The Beast of Shadows
by Sir Weston
Summary: The Festival of Emotions is a time when people come forward with their true feelings. But that just makes them vulnerable to a horrifying beast who uses people's secrets and emotions against them. And with Kellach, Moyra, and Driskoll harboring secrets of their own, how can they ever hope to stop the creature known only as the Beast of Shadows?
1. Chapter 1

**The Beast of Shadows.**

 **I've recently started re-reading one of my childhood favorite series,** _ **Knights of the Silver Dragon**_ **and because I am now an adult with my own money, I can actually afford to buy the whole series and read them again. I realized I still love the series, so here's my first fan fiction about it.**

 **Also, if anyone reading this has read any of my other stories, I would like to say that I will continue working on them. I just have to back in a writing funk. Hopefully, this will help.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

 **CHAPTER ONE**

Moyra sighed, annoyed, as her mother took her sweet time to tidy up. In Moyra's opinion, it seemed like Royma was taking even longer to open the stand than usual, just to annoy her. She couldn't wait to be off to find her two friends, Driskoll and Kellach. It was the first day of the month known as the Festival of Emotions. Although Moyra didn't care about any of the lovey-dovey things that went on during the festival, she always had a good time making fun of couples who acted differently during the festival with her friends.

As Royma started unrolling a banner, Moyra shuffled her feet. "Mom, can I please go now?" she requested, "You don't need me to help you open the stand and I promised the boys I'd meet them in front of main street half an hour ago."

Royma straightened and turned to frown at her daughter. "Moyra," she said calmly, "You know this is important. People are always buying things as gifts for their loved ones during the festival. And hand knitted things are perfect for them. The money we make this month could feed us for a while."

Moyra sighed. "I know, mom," she said, "But that still doesn't change the fact that you don't need me here. I'd just get in your way." She batted her eyelashes at her mother.

Royma sighed. "Fine," she admitted, "You may go."

As Moyra made a holler of joy, Royma suddenly held up a hand. "Wait," she said, "Before you go, I want to give you something."

Confused, Moyra walked back as Royma dug for something under the table.

"You're growing into a young woman," her mother explained, "And I'm not saying it'll happen right away, but you might someday find a young man who you want to spend the rest of your life with." Moyra felt herself grow warm as Royma finally found what she was looking for. "That's when you give him this." She held out a small box and opened it. Inside was a plain looking gold ring with strange letters wrapped around it.

Moyra stared at it, totally unimpressed. "What is it?" she asked.

"It's called a promise band," Royma replied, "It was your grandmother's, but I think it's time you had it."

She took the box from her mother and casually inspected it. "What am I supposed to do with this?" she wondered.

Royma sighed and shook her head. "You're supposed to give it to someone you love," she answered, "The ring, although plain looking, is very powerful and magical. It reflects the giver's love for the receiver. And once put upon the finger, no one can take it off unless the person who gave the ring falls out of love with the person they gave it to."

Moyra felt her face grow hot. "Why would I need something like this?" she asked, sheepishly, "I'm still young. I'm not going to fall in love with anyone anytime soon. Besides, I only know two boys my age."

"I don't know," Royma said, slyly, "Love could be closer than you think." She stared past her daughter, looking at something behind her. Confused, Moyra turned her head to look and saw Kellach and Driskoll striding down the street towards them. They were talking to each other and didn't notice the two staring at them. Moyra whipped back around, her cheeks feeling like they were on fire.

"Mom!" she hissed, "Those two are my best friends! I'm not in love with either of them! I wouldn't jeopardize our friendship like that! What were you thinking?" She started to hand the box back to her mother.

Royma raised another hand. "All right, all right," she chuckled, "I'm just teasing. I know you three have been friends since you were young. But keep the ring anyway. Hey, you never know." She winked at her daughter, then turned back to her work.

Still steaming, Moyra forced herself to be calm and slipped the box into her pocket. Then she turned to face her friends. She took a couple of paces forward to meet them before they reached the stall. "Hey guys," she greeted, "Sorry I didn't meet you earlier. My mom wouldn't let me get away."

"That's all right," Driskoll replied, "We were just coming to get you anyway. A strange caravan pulled into town and this overly flamboyant man was driving it raving about some story about love or something."

"We wanted to see if you wanted to come with us to make fun of him," Kellach added.

Moyra grinned. "Yeah, I want to come," she exclaimed, "My mom finally let me go, so I'm free! Let's go!" She strode off with her friends, the box and ring in her pocket totally forgotten about.

When Driskoll had said the man was flamboyant, he hadn't been kidding, Moyra observed. The man standing in the center of the large crowd that had gathered wore a tight outfit of red and pink that covered his whole body like a costume. He wore a huge red hat with an enormous pink feather. Many red and pink streamers hung from his arms and a long cape made of red velvet flowed out behind him. He was one of the most ridiculous looking people Moyra had ever seen in her life. The man stood on top of his caravan addressing the crowd, but he was so stupid looking Moyra wondered how anyone could take him seriously.

"Ladies and gentlemen!" the man bellowed, swishing his cape about him, "I have come here today, during the first day of the Festival of Emotions to tell you all a story of love and tragedy!"

Moyra scoffed, rolling her eyes. Of course he would, storytellers came all the time to tell their stupid stories during the festival in hopes of getting gullible couples to throw their money at them.

"This is a true story, my friends," the man continued, "One that teaches a fine lesson!" While he talked, the man made wide arm gestures as if to punctuate what he was saying. Except what he was saying wasn't interesting. And he also talked in a loud, slow, and dramatic voice like a typical storyteller. A really boring storyteller.

"Once, there was a young woman who was in love with a young man!" the man started, "Though they were friends, the woman kept her feelings sheltered and close, never revealing her true feelings for this man." Moyra suddenly felt herself grow tense, and her cheeks started to warm. "For years they were together as friends, with the woman secretly harboring her affections for the young man. Until one day, the woman found that the man had taken a lover, and had forgotten all about her. She went for years wondering what could have been if she had just revealed her true feelings for the man. Then, on the man and his lover's wedding day, the regret and love lost from the woman drove her to the brink! She threw herself off a cliff and into the roaring sea below." The man swept his gaze over the crowd and his eyes seemed to rest on Kellach, Driskoll, and Moyra. "Learn this lesson well, friends," he said, more quietly now, "If you resist the feelings in your heart, it will lead to utter disaster."

As the man wrapped up his story, the crowd started to disperse. Moyra turned to her friends with a look of disgust. "Can you believe that guy?" she scoffed, "What a load!"

"Yeah, and he didn't even tell the story right," Driskoll added. Kellach looked at him.

"How would you know?" he asked.

Driskoll smirked. "I've heard that story before," he replied, "Someone tells it every year. He left out the part where the woman, before killing herself, went insane and murdered the man and his lover right on their wedding day. He also forgot to add that the man had a brother who tried to stop her, but she killed him too. And, in my opinion, he left out one of the most important details of the story."

"And what's that?" Moyra wondered, her cheeks feeling hot again.

"The woman and man weren't just friends," Driskoll said, "They were best friends, along with the brother. They did everything together. And the woman fell so deeply in love with her friend that she was afraid of what he would think of her if she told him." Driskoll sighed, "That's what's supposed to make the story stronger. But of course, he didn't include that. What a lousy storyteller."

"Yeah," Moyra agreed, silently willing herself to cool down. _It was just a story,_ she thought to herself, _It doesn't apply to you._

"Anyway," Kellach interrupted her thoughts, "Let's go get something to eat. We haven't eaten since dawn. Are you coming with us?" He addressed Moyra.

Moyra forced a smile. "Yeah." She replied, "I'm coming."

 **I'll leave it at that for now. I'll probably start working on the next chapter as soon as I put this one up, not that I'm expecting a lot of demand or anything. I just have ideas that I want to get out before I lose them. Anyway, next time we're going to shift to Driskoll's point of view, because I had trouble making the story work with the view of just one of them. Anyway, leave a comment if you happen to read, and maybe check out some of my other fan fictions!**


	2. Chapter 2

**I'm starting to type this right after I finished my first chapter, but who knows if I'll actually post it that soon. Oh well.**

 **Anyway, Driskoll's point of view. Enjoy.**

 **CHAPTER TWO**

Driskoll followed Kellach and Moyra to a nearby restaurant that was offering a discount all month in celebration. It wasn't that fancy, but Driskoll knew that Moyra didn't like eating fancy, so it was all right. He also knew from experience that at the end of the meal, Moyra would start to pay for her portion of the bill, but Kellach would cut her off, insisting he pay for her, and Moyra would refuse, saying he didn't have to, and Kellach would insist, and then they would argue for five minutes about who was paying until Driskoll would finally throw his hands up and pay for all of them.

And today was no different.

After the customary argument after the bill was finally taken care of (paid for by Driskoll, of course,) they sat back and talked for a while. Suddenly, Moyra reached into her pocket. "What has been poking me in the side this whole time?" she growled. She brought out a tiny box. "Oh yeah, I totally forgot about this thing," she muttered.

"What is it?" Driskoll asked her. Moyra opened the box and showed him. Inside was the most boring and unimpressive ring he had ever seen. Its only value seemed to be the fact that is was gold.

"Oh," Driskoll sat back, a little disappointed, "How exciting."

Moyra glared at him. "I'm sorry if my ring isn't thrilling enough for you," she snapped, "My mother gave it to me. She said it was my grandmother's."

"What does that writing say?" Kellach asked, leaning over to get a better look at it.

Moyra shrugged. "I don't know," she replied, taking the ring out of the box and handing it to him, "You're welcome to try to read it."

Kellach took the ring and inspected it closely. "It's kind of hard to read," he said after a moment, "But I think it says 'I will forever love you.'"

Driskoll scoffed and took the ring from him. "That's silly," he said, putting the ring on his own finger for no particular reason, "Why would it say something like that?"

"Probably because my mom said I was supposed to give it only to the man that I would spend the rest of my life with," Moyra replied, shrugging. Panicking, Driskoll pulled the ring off his finger and tossed it at her. She and Kellach suppressed a chuckle.

"She called it a promise band," she explained, "It's supposed to be magical in that if I give it to someone I love it won't come off their finger unless I fall out of love with them." She picked up the ring and scoffed at it. "I don't really believe her, though. She probably made it up to make it appear more special so I wouldn't sell it." She turned in her seat to Kellach. "Let's see what happens when you put on," she offered.

"Moyra, I don't-" But Kellach didn't get to finish his sentence as Moyra grabbed his wrist and slid the band onto his ring finger. To Driskoll, it seemed to shine a little brighter. How odd. He let out a little chuckle.

"It looks good on you, bro," he laughed. Kellach scowled at him.

"Very funny," Kellach said, pulling at the ring, "But you should probably keep it Moyra." Suddenly, Kellach looked down, and he started turning pale. "Um, it won't come off," he murmured.

Moyra blinked at him, then laughed. "Funny, very funny, Kell," she giggled, "But seriously, give it back, my mom will wonder what happened to it."

"I am being serious!" Kellach exclaimed, "It won't come off!"

Now Moyra went pale. "R-really?" she asked quietly.

Driskoll thought for moment. "Didn't you say that the ring won't come off unless you're not in love with that person?" he asked.

"Yeah, but-"

"Moyra, are you in love with Kellach?"

No one said anything. Driskoll stared seriously at Moyra and Kellach. Moyra continued growing pale, while Kellach's eyes darted quickly to the floor. It was several seconds before anyone said anything.

"No," Moyra finally replied. Driskoll thought he saw her take a very deep breath. "I'm not in love with Kellach. I'm sure it's just stuck or has something to do with him being a wizard." She forced a sly grin. "Maybe my mom got Zendric to enchant it to get back at us for something."

Kellach muttered his agreement, but Driskoll wasn't so sure. Why would Zendric or Royma want to get back at them? They hadn't done anything wrong. Recently.

"Anyway, can we please get back to the real issue?" Moyra said, hastily switching topics, "Why was that guy the most ridiculous looking person I've ever seen in my life? I mean, did you see his hat?"

"Did you see his clothes?" Driskoll asked, grinning.

Soon, they were all laughing, the ring on Kellach's finger all but forgotten.

…

"Did you hear that they're starting to conjure up a large palace outside of Curston for the festival?" Driskoll asked his brother as they walked home after parting ways with Moyra.

"Yes," Kellach replied, "They do that every year. They hold a big party in the main room that could fit the whole of Curston in it with a lot of unnecessary rooms to make it look bigger. I don't know why that's so noteworthy."

"Well I heard that they added more rooms so young lovers can-"

"I don't know why everyone acts like the Festival of Emotions is just about love," Kellach cut him off quickly, "People generally have more emotions than just love. Joy, sadness, anger, fear, disgust…"

"Embarrassment," Driskoll added, slyly. Kellach looked at him.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Come on, Kell," Driskoll said, chuckling, "You totally tensed up when you thought Moyra might be in love with you. You were paler than a ghost."

Kellach shook his head. "Moyra's not in love with me," he assured him, "But I do wish I could get this stupid ring off my finger. Why did Moyra have to put it on me anyway?" He pulled at the ring again, but it wouldn't budge.

Driskoll shrugged. "I thought it was kind of funny," he told him. Kellach glared at him.

"You were the one who brought it up," he growled, "If you hadn't it wouldn't have gotten so awkward."

As they approached their house, Kellach suddenly stopped, with an arm up to stop Driskoll. Puzzled, Driskoll looked past his brother to see what had caused him to stop.

And that's when he saw it. A strange, dark shadow slowly slithered on the ground out the front door. It didn't take any shape Driskoll recognized, and it didn't belong to a physical being. The shadow inched along the ground, then turned and suddenly rushed towards the brothers. Driskoll braced himself as the shadow raced underneath him. A powerful wind suddenly blasted them, nearly knocking them off their feet. Then it stopped as quickly as it had come. Driskoll gasped for breath.

"What was that?" he asked, tugging on his brother's arm.

Kellach was just getting his breath back. "Some sort of shadow," he replied, "But what was it doing in our house?"

"I don't know," Driskoll answered, a little shakily, "Why did it rush us like that? And where did that wind come from? Kellach?"

His brother shook his head. "I'm not sure," he muttered, "Maybe we should go see Zendric? He usually has the answers to things like this." With that, and without waiting for his brother's reply, Kellach turned on his heels and started striding down the street, towards Zendric's tower.

Driskoll sighed. "Can't we get through one week without something trying attack us?" he muttered. Then he hurried after his brother.

 **Ooh! Things are getting good! What's going to happen next? How should I know?**

 **P.S. See if you can't spot the Pixar reference. ;p**


	3. Chapter 3

**We're switching to Kellach now. I'm not gonna go in any pattern, I'm just doing whoever I think fits the needs of the chapter.**

 **Kudos if you got my Pixar reference in the previous chapter. If you didn't, here's a hint, I'm referencing Inside Out.**

 **Anyway, here you go.**

 **CHAPTER 3**

Kellach was relieved when they got to Zendric's tower and he answered the door. It was always unnerving when something happened to the powerful wizard. It usually meant something horrible was coming. As Zendric lead them inside, Kellach hoped that he would be able to solve their problem quickly.

"What seems to be the matter, boys?" Zendric asked them after they had been lead to the study.

"We were on our way home when we were jumped by some sort of shadow," Kellach replied, getting straight to the point, "It came out the front door and rushed at us. And when it did, we were blasted by a strong wind."

"What did the shadow look like?" Zendric wondered, rubbing his chin.

"It didn't really look like anything," Driskoll answered, "I mean, it seemed to have a shape, but none that I recognized."

"Hmm… Interesting." Zendric strode over to his bookshelf and started looking at the many books on his shelf. "Interesting, very interesting indeed."

Kellach suddenly looked worried. "Zendric?" he said, nervously, "You know what it is, don't you? You know how to get rid of it, right?"

Zendric sighed and strode back over to them. "I think I know what it is," he replied, "But I'm not sure why it would attack you. You don't-" he cut off when he spotted the ring on Kellach's hand. "Where did you get that?" he wondered.

Kellach looked down at the ring. "Huh? Oh, Moyra gave it to me," he replied, using the loosest definition of the word "gave,""She said it was some sort of special ring or something. But it won't come off."

"I see," Zendric said, without a hint of change in his tone, "The shadow that attacked you is most likely a creature called the beast of shadows."

"The beast of shadows?" Driskoll repeated.

"Yes. It is a fowl creature that appears whenever strong emotions gather. It uses people's emotions, and their secrets, against them. The stronger the emotions and the more secrets that are revealed, the stronger it grows." Zendric sat down in a chair across from them. "When it grows strong enough, it can completely control you, telling you what you will do and when you will do it. It's like it reads out a story for you, and you must do as the story says." He paused for a moment. "And those stories usually end in death."

Kellach and Driskoll were silent for a moment. "But why would it appear at our house?" Kellach asked, quietly.

"I'm not sure," Zendric replied, looking away. Kellach tilted his head slightly. Why would the old wizard look away like that? Was there something he wasn't sharing?

"Well, how do we get rid of it?" Driskoll inquired.

"That's the tricky part," Zendric said, "I don't know."

Kellach's jaw dropped. "What do you mean you don't know?" he asked, despairingly.

"A shadow beast hasn't appeared in many, many years," Zendric answered, "I will have to consult my books to find an answer to our problem. Now," he paused to look out the window, "The sun is going down. You'd better get home before curfew."

…

"I hope Zendric can find an answer quickly," Driskoll said as he and Kellach made their way back home, "I wouldn't want that _thing_ to use my secrets against me." He shivered, but not because of the chill that was slowly settling over the town.

"That's fine," Kellach said, not really paying attention. He was scanning the tops of the buildings as he walked. Something seemed wrong, but he didn't know what. "You don't have any secrets anyway."

Driskoll glared at him. "I have plenty of secrets, thank you!" he growled.

Kellach scoffed, still distracted. "Yeah? Like what?"

"I'm not going to tell you!" his brother snapped, "Then they wouldn't be secrets anymore!"

Kellach scoffed again, but he didn't answer. What was it? What was wrong? Why did it seem like there was suddenly danger all around them? He was so distracted, he didn't even notice the little girl until he tripped over her. He gasped as he fell to the ground, with the young girl landing on top of him. He tried to roll over, but the girl was tangled with his legs.

"I'm sorry," Kellach murmured, untangling himself, "I wasn't watching where I was going." He heard his brother snickering at him.

The girl, who was half his height, and Kellach guessed, about half his age, stood and glared at him. "Why don't you watch where you're going, you klutz!" she hissed at him, "You nearly crushed me!"

Kellach was quite taken aback at her rage. "I said I was sorry," he said, keeping his voice calm, "What more do you want from me?"

"Are you ok?" Driskoll asked before the girl could reply. He was still chuckling slightly.

The girl whipped around and stared at him with wide eyes. "I'm fine," she said in a much smaller and kinder voice, "Just a little dusty is all."

"I was asking my brother, but ok," Driskoll muttered under his voice. He addressed Kellach. "Are _you_ all right?"

"I'm fine," he answered, struggling to his feet. Before the girl could whip around and glare at him, Kellach stepped over to his brother. He opened his mouth to utter a good bye, but the girl spoke first.

"My name is Serilynne," she told them, as if they had asked.

"Oh," Driskoll replied, "Um, I'm Driskoll, and this is my older brother, Kellach."

"Driskoll," Serilynne repeated his name, almost dreamily, and completely ignoring Kellach, "I like that name!"

"Er, thanks?" Driskoll said, confused, "Uh, anyway, we have to go now. It's almost curfew. You should probably get home as well."

Serilynne's eyes widened. "Oh, I will!" she gasped, "Thank you, Driskoll, for your kindness!" She bowed gratefully at him and, throwing one last dirty look at Kellach, turned and ran off.

Driskoll stared after her. "What was that about?" he wondered.

Kellach sneered and nudged his brother. "Come on, like you don't know!" he said, "Didn't you see the way she stared at you?"

Driskoll looked at him, confused. "What are you talking about?"

It was all Kellach could do to force himself not to laugh. "Driskoll," he snickered, "That little girl had a crush on you!"

Kellach could not describe the shade of red Driskoll's face turned. He started shuffling his feet in the dirt and he glared up at him. "That's stupid," he growled, "She was probably just grateful that didn't trip over her like you did!"

"Whatever you say, Dris," Kellach replied, raising an amused eyebrow, "Come on, let's get home before it gets dark."

But as they walked through main street, all the vendors closing up for the night, they suddenly heard bells going off. Kellach and Driskoll stopped in their tracks.

"Do you hear that?" Kellach asked.

"That's the fire bells!" Driskoll exclaimed, "Someone's house is on fire!"

Kellach scanned the sky to try to spot any smoke drifting in the darkening sky. Suddenly, he saw it. "Over there!" he shouted, pointing, "It's coming from Broken Town!"

"Isn't that right around where Moyra lives?" Driskoll wondered, squinting up at the sky.

Kellach felt his heart drop. "Come on," he called to his brother, racing off in the direction of the smoke, "We have to make sure Moyra is ok!" He glanced briefly behind him and was relieved to see that, for once, Driskoll was following without any arguments.

They raced through Broken Town, easily finding their way, as they had been to Moyra's house countless of times. As they got closer, the smell of fire and smoke hit them, and it was coming from the exact direction they were heading. Kellach braced himself for what he was going to see when they got there. When they finally emerged from the street in front of Moyra's home, they stopped dead in their tracks.

The entire house was completely engulfed in flames that towered over the rest of the buildings. Two of the houses next to it were also on fire, but not to the same degree as Moyra's. The heat coming from the flames was so intense that it melted away the night chill. Kellach desperately looked around for Moyra and was relieved to see her standing a good way back from the inferno next to her mother. Torin, the boys' father and captain of the watch, was at the scene, commanding his watchers to block the street and stop the fire from spreading.

"Moyra!" Kellach called to her. Moyra whipped around and spotted them. Leaving her mother to gape at their house, she ran over to them.

"Oh Kellach!" she cried when she reached them, "Look at my house! Somebody set it on fire! Mom and I barely made it out in time, but my dad got trapped inside! Luckily your dad rescued him, but they took him to the healing ward for his burns!" Tears streamed into her eyes. "What are we going to do? My home is… oh, Kellach!"

She threw herself into his arms, pressing her tear stained face into his chest, and clutching the front of his robes. Kellach gently wrapped his arms around her comfortingly. She sobbed silently as Driskoll walked over to them.

"Your dad's going to be ok, right?" he asked, "I mean, Breddo's been in worse situations than this. He is a thief after all."

"I'm sure he will be," Kellach answered, soothingly, still holding Moyra in his arms, "The clerks here are amazing. They'll have him healed up in no time!"

"But what about my house?" Moyra whispered, not taking her head off of Kellach's chest, "Where are we going to live? We can't afford anything else! And all my mother's knitting supplies were in there. We won't be able to make any money until we can get more supplies! If we can pay for them, that is."

Kellach suddenly felt Moyra slowly sink to the ground, and he went down with her, holding her close to him the whole time. He wrapped his arms around her tighter.

"It'll be ok," he said quietly, "We'll think of something."

He heard Moyra whisper something, but couldn't quite catch it. They sat like that for a while, Kellach and Moyra on the ground silently embracing while Driskoll stood next to them. Kellach could tell that Moyra was refusing to look at her house as the watchers slowly got the fire under control. He felt her heart pounding against him, but her breathing had slowed at bit, showing that she was starting to calm down a bit.

Kellach looked up as he heard someone approach and saw that it was Royma. She looked like she wanted to say something, but then she spotted the ring she had given Moyra around his finger. Blushing and turning away, he made that hand into a loose fist so she couldn't see it anymore.

"Moyra, I'm going to go with your father to the healing ward and make sure he's ok," she told her daughter, "I think it would be best if you stayed with Torin and the boys for a while. I already asked him, and he said it was all right."

Moyra finally pulled her face away from Kellach's chest to look at her mother, but she didn't pull away from his arms. "Ok, mom," she said, sadly, "I just hope daddy will be all right."

"So do I, sweet heart," Royma replied, a deep gloom in her voice. She cast one more glance at Kellach, then walked away towards where some of the watch had taken her husband.

Moyra sighed and rested her head on Kellach's chest again. _She must be exhausted,_ Kellach realized, _Losing her home. Almost losing her father. It must be tough._ He could already hear her breathing slow, like she had already given herself up to sleep. But Kellach didn't want to move her until she was ready.

"It's going to rain," he heard Driskoll suddenly say beside him. His brother had sat down on the ground beside them and was gently leaning on Kellach. Sure enough, a light drizzle started, putting out the last specks of fire from the burnt out husk of a house. Kellach gently pressed Moyra closer to him so she wouldn't get too rained on.

"We should head home," Kellach said after a moment, "It's getting really dark. Maybe we can have dad or one of the watch escort us home." Driskoll and Moyra nodded. Driskoll stood up first and gently helped Kellach and Moyra to their feet. Then he trudged over to Torin who was with a small squad of watchers, making sure the fire was fully put out.

"Dad," Driskoll said, pulling on his sleeve, "We're going to take Moyra home with us now, ok?"

Torin whipped around and stared in astonishment at his son, as if he hadn't even realized he been there the whole time. He looked up and saw Kellach who was standing a few paces away with a gentle arm around Moyra's shoulders for support. He looked like he wanted to be mad that they had been here and could've potentially been hurt, but he couldn't while he saw his eldest comforting his friend. Torin sighed.

"All right," he resigned, "Give me a moment to give these guys their orders and then I'll walk home with you." He turned and barked orders about spreading out to find the culprit and containing the fire in case it sprang up again. Then he turned back to his boys and Moyra. "Ok, let's go."


	4. Chapter 4

**That chapter was a lot longer than the last one! Yay! Anyway, here's the next chapter. It's in Driskoll's view again.**

 **CHAPTER 4**

The rain had stopped by the time the group got home. Torin unlocked the door and let three in. Saying a brief good night, he trudged upstairs to his own room. Driskoll and Kellach turned to Moyra, who standing just in the doorway, staring at the floor.

Driskoll cleared his throat. "Er, I guess we'll be going to bed now," he said.

Moyra looked up swiftly, a look of panic on her face. "Wait!" she called, before the boys could start up the stairs, "Please don't leave me alone tonight! Um, would it be all right if I shared your room with you?"

Driskoll and Kellach looked at each other then at Moyra. "Of course you can," Kellach replied. Moyra sighed gratefully and followed them up the stairs. When they got to their room, Kellach immediately went over to the closet and started pulling out extra blankets and pillows. Driskoll thought he was going to make Moyra sleep on the floor, but instead he said: "You can take my bed tonight, Moyra. I can sleep on the floor."

"Kellach, I couldn't ask you to do that for me," Moyra replied, holding up her hands.

"I insist," Kellach said, "I don't mind, really. You've had a rough day, and I would be more than happy to lend you my bed."

"If you're sure," Moyra murmured, sitting down on the bed across from Driskoll's.

"Positive," Kellach insisted, spreading the extra blankets on the floor. Driskoll, who was already settled into his own bed, watched as his brother and Moyra made themselves comfortable. Once they were settled in, Driskoll blew out the candles lighting the room, and they were plunged into darkness. Driskoll rolled over and tried to settle into sleep.

…

" _Kill… kill…"_ a voice whispered in Driskoll's head, _"You know what you must do… they will betray you… kill them first… make them suffer…"_

Driskoll woke in a flash of panic, swiftly sitting up in his bed and breathing heavily. Then he realized where he was. _It was just a dream,_ he thought, _Nothing is wrong._

He looked around the room and saw the very early rays of dawn weakly streaming in from the window. He looked down at his brother, still sleeping on the floor, as he gently breathed in and out. His back was turned to him, but Driskoll could tell just by how peaceful his breathing was that his sleep was undisturbed by nightmares. Then he looked up at the bed across from him and saw Moyra, wide wake and staring right at him. Driskoll started a bit.

"What's wrong with you?" Moyra asked quietly as to not disturb Kellach.

"I just had a night terror, that's all," Driskoll replied in a low voice.

Moyra blinked at him. "Did you want me to hold you?" she wondered.

"What? Ew, no!" Driskoll spat, good naturedly, "It was just a nightmare. I'm fine. Anyway, how long have you been awake?"

"I've been awake since the sun started coming out," she answered, "I was just watching you boys sleep." She put on a mischievous grin. "You look so peaceful in your sleep," she teased.

Driskoll smiled and rolled his eyes. At least it looked like Moyra had most of her spirit back, he reflected. He looked at Moyra, who sat up a little and grinned.

"So I was watching you sleep last night," she repeated, "And you were like a little angel! …Except for your snoring, which was like a growling bugbear with a sinus infection!" She tipped her head back slightly and, as quietly as she could, replicated the sound of Driskoll's snoring.

"That's not funny," Driskoll said. But he would have been more convincing if he hadn't been trying to hold in a laugh and also hadn't been grinning all over. Both of them started giggling softly.

"I know that your house burned down and that you've had a rough night," Kellach suddenly mumbled from the floor, startling them, "But do you think you could keep it down?"

"Sorry, Kell," Driskoll apologized.

"Yeah, sorry," Moyra agreed, silently grinning over at Driskoll. They both lay back down to go back to sleep until the sun fully came up. Before Driskoll closed his eyes again, he couldn't help but notice Moyra staring down at Kellach, who had fallen back asleep. Deciding to think nothing of it, he closed his eyes and fell back asleep.

…

When Driskoll woke up again, Kellach and Moyra were still sound asleep. Stretching and getting out of bed, he carefully stepped over his brother, who looked as though he hadn't moved an inch all night, and headed down stairs. Torin was already gone, and he had left the customary note to his sons telling them not to destroy anything. He shrugged and was about to start making breakfast for himself, when he heard a knock on the front door. He walked to the door and opened it.

Standing there was a girl he had never seen before. She looked to be around Kellach's age, but she wasn't as tall. She had long light brown hair that was tied in various types of braids and her eyes were a hazel color. The only other thing of note about her was that she was wearing apprentice wizard's robes, much like the ones Kellach wore. Driskoll lifted an eyebrow at her.

"Can I help you?" he asked.

"Is this where Kellach lives?" she wondered.

Driskoll narrowed his eyes at her. "How do you know my brother?" he hissed. The girl sighed and rolled her eyes.

"My name is Alexandra," she replied, "I'm one of Zendric's students." She looked at Driskoll. "You didn't seriously think your brother was Zendric's only apprentice, did you?"

"Of course not," Driskoll growled. He had just never met any of Zendric's other students. Zendric taught his apprentices one at a time, so the only one Driskoll had ever seen was Kellach. "Anyway, he's asleep right now," he continued, "What do you want?"

Alexandra scoffed. "Best student, yeah right," she muttered under her breath, "He's not even awake yet."

Driskoll felt himself growing hot out of anger. "He is Zendric's best student," he snapped, feeling a need to defend his currently unconscious brother, "He's a far better wizard than I bet you could ever be. He just had a long night last night! Now, for the last time, what do you want?"

"Zendric wanted me to give this to him," she answered, tossing a letter at him, "It's about lessons, or something." She folded her arms and glared at him as Driskoll opened the letter. He knew he should probably just bring it to Kellach, but he wasn't going to let this girl tell him what to do. It read: _Kellach, I am canceling our lessons for a few days so I can research how to defeat the Beast of Shadows. Please stay safe and don't go looking for the monster. I am completely serious on this Kellach. Do. Not. Look. For. It. At. All. I'm not trying to secretly tell you to look for it. I am telling you straight that this monster is very dangerous, possibly one of the most dangerous creatures you've come up against. I don't want you or your friends getting hurt or possibly killed. I'm serious, Kellach. No looking for it._

 _Zendric_

 _P.S. There was something else I wanted to tell you. What was it? Oh yeah, this is Alexandra, one of my other students. Unfortunately she is not doing as well as everyone else in her studies. I want you to tutor her for me while I research the shadow beast. Maybe you can actually make something out of her._

Driskoll read the letter and looked up at Alexandra, who was scowling at him. He put on a nasty grin. "So, you're not doing so well in your studies, huh?" he sneered, "And you dared to chastise my brother?"

Alexandra glared at him, but didn't reply. Driskoll sighed. "I'll go wake him up," he told her, "Wait here." Then he left her in the doorway and trudged upstairs.

Kellach was exactly where Driskoll left him, looking completely dead to the world, and again, as if he hadn't moved the tiniest bit. Driskoll carefully inched over to him and crouched down next to him. He gently shook his brother, not wanting to disturb Moyra.

"Hey Kellach," he said quietly, "Wake up."

Kellach didn't move at all. Driskoll sighed and leaned down so his mouth was just inches from his brother's ear. "KELLACH WAKE UP!" Driskoll hollered directly into his ear. Kellach flung himself up in a panic, gasping and throwing a hand to his now probably deaf ear. Moyra was also startled awake, nearly falling out of Kellach's bed. Kellach glared angrily at his brother, his hand still to his ear.

"Driskoll!" he hissed, "What did you do that for?"

Driskoll shrugged. "You wouldn't wake up," he replied.

"And you couldn't just wake me like a normal person?"

"No, but I could wake you like a normal brother," Driskoll countered.

Kellach continued glaring at him. "And why exactly did you feel a need to shout in my face?" he inquired angrily.

Driskoll pointed to the door. "There's someone here to see you," he replied, "It's an important message or something." He wasn't going to tell him that he had already read the message in fear that it would enrage his brother further.

Kellach sighed and fell back onto his blanket and pillow. "Tell them I'm busy," he muttered.

"Can't do it, brother," Driskoll said, shaking his head, "I already told her that you were only asleep. And she seems really impatient."

"Wait," Moyra said, speaking for the first time, "There's a _girl_ at the door?" Driskoll could've sworn a dark look passed her face.

"She's one of Kellach's classmates," he told her, avoiding her gaze.

"I don't have any classmates," Kellach said simply, placing a pillow over his face to block out the light.

Driskoll sighed and rolled his eyes. "I know that," he said, "I meant she's another student of Zendric's. And she has a message for you."

"Good for her," Kellach replied, keeping the pillow over his face.

Sighing again, Driskoll pulled the pillow off of his brother's face. "The message is from Zendric," he told him. At the mention of his teacher's name, Kellach scrambled to his feet.

"Why didn't you say so?" he snapped, heading out the door and down the stairs.

Driskoll looked over at Moyra, who was simply sitting cross-legged on Kellach's bed. "Perhaps I should have lead with that," he said to her.

"Really?" Moyra replied in an exaggerated tone.


	5. Chapter 5

**I would just like to say something before today's chapter. For some sick reason, I like to torment and torture my favorite characters. I don't do that to all of them, but I do torture about half of them. I just like to make them uncomfortable, physically and emotionally.**

 **My favorite character of this series is Kellach. You can figure out the rest.**

 **CHAPTER 5**

Moyra almost didn't want to get out Kellach's nice warm bed, but she had to see who this new girl was. She followed Driskoll down the stairs, where they stopped about half way up. Kellach was at the front door talking to the girl, whom Moyra annoyingly noted was taller than her.

"I hate her already," she growled in a low voice to Driskoll.

"Moyra!" Driskoll gasped, "You shouldn't judge people based on first appearances! I mean, I'm not very fond of her either, and I've only known her for about two minutes, but still!"

Moyra decided to ignore his comment. "Do you know her name?" she asked him, wanting to know all that she could about her potential new enemy.

"Her name is Alexandra," Driskoll replied, "Apparently she's not doing too well in her studies, so Zendric wants Kellach to tutor her." Moyra snickered quietly at this news.

The door closed and Kellach turned around, alone. He spotted the two on the stairs and rolled his eyes, but said nothing as he walked into the kitchen. Moyra and Driskoll quickly stood up and followed him. Kellach busied himself walking around the kitchen, putting a teapot full of water over a fire. Moyra and Driskoll sat down at the table.

"So Zendric canceled my lessons for a few days so he could do more research on the beast of shadows," Kellach told them, without turning around, "Something I'm sure _Driskoll_ already knew." He cast a glare over his shoulder at his brother.

"What's the beast of shadows?" Moyra wondered.

"Oh right! We never told you what happened to us yesterday!" Driskoll realized. He quickly told Moyra the details of the shadow that had attacked them, and what Zendric thought of it. When he got to describing its powers, Moyra shivered.

"That sounds horrible," she said, "A creature that can use your secrets and emotions against you? How terrifying! I wouldn't want anything using my secrets against me! Not that I _have_ secrets…"

"Of course not," Driskoll agreed, raising an eyebrow.

"That's not even the worst part," Kellach added, coming over to the table. He set down three steaming mugs of tea and handed one to each of them before sitting down himself. "When it gains enough power, it can exert complete control over someone, dictating everything they do and say."

"Yeah, how did Zendric describe it?" Driskoll wondered for a moment. "I think he said it's like it reads you a story and you have to act it out for it, or something like that."

"Like a demented play," Kellach muttered, summing it up.

Moyra felt a cold chill run up her spine. Then she thought of something. "It seems rather convenient that one showed up right on the Festival of Emotions, the month when everyone's feelings are on display and intensified," she said. "It must be looking to gain a lot of power quickly."

"That's what I was thinking," Kellach agreed, "I was also wondering if it had anything to do with your house burning down. Not that I'm trying to make light of your situation," he added hastily, "but it would be an easy way to heighten your emotions. Your fear for your own life and your parents, your sadness of losing your home, your anger of possibly being targeted."

Moyra muttered something under her breath that the boys couldn't hear. "You may be right," she said in a louder voice, "But how would we find anything out?" She glanced at the letter Kellach had left on the table. "Zendric said not to go looking for the creature."

Kellach scoffed. "You two obviously don't know Zendric like I do," he said, "He obviously wants us to find out more about it on our own."

"But Kellach, it specifically says several times not to go looking for the beast," Driskoll pointed out calmly.

"Besides," Kellach continued, ignoring his brother's statement and taking a sip from his tea, "We don't have to look for it. We just need to find out more about it before it gets too powerful. Zendric can do his own research, and we can do ours."

Moyra sighed. Obviously Kellach's mind was set, and there was no changing it. She took a sip from her own mug. "So what do you propose we do?" she asked, "I don't really want to go back to where my house used to be. It's too traumatic."

Kellach nodded. "That's all right, Moyra," he said, "We don't have to if you don't want to. Driskoll and I understand."

"But Kellach, what if there's an important clue at- ouch!" Driskoll cut himself off as his older brother kicked him in the shin under the table. He rubbed his leg, while glaring at Kellach. "I mean, no, we're not going back there."

"Maybe we should go check out that stupid looking castle outside of town," Moyra suggested, "I'm sure there's already a bunch of people there and maybe the shadow will show up again to try to gain more power."

Kellach shrugged. "We've got nothing else to go on," he admitted, "I'm all for it. Driskoll?"

"Sure, why not?" his brother replied, "If nothing else, it gives us something to do."

So it was decided. Kellach lead the way to the front door as they grabbed a few things on their way out. But as soon as Kellach stepped out of the house, he tripped over something and fell to the ground, hard. Moyra and Driskoll quickly raced over to him. Before Moyra could even start to open her mouth to ask if he was all right, a high pitched voice interrupted.

"By the gods! You did it again!" it screeched. Driskoll groaned.

"Serilynne!" he exclaimed, "What are you doing outside my front door? Also, how did you find out where I live?"

"Friend of yours?" Moyra asked, helping Kellach to his feet.

"Hardly," he muttered to her, "We just met her yesterday."

Serilynne blinked up at Driskoll, completely ignoring Kellach and Moyra. "When we met yesterday, I followed you home!" she said proudly, "But I got lost a few times. But I'm here now!" She turned to glare at Kellach, who was still holding onto Moyra for support. "But then he tried to crush me again!"

"How was I to know you would be standing right outside the door?" Kellach muttered.

Driskoll ignored him and addressed the tiny girl. "Serilynne, go home!" he told her, "I'm sure your parents are worried about you!"

Serilynne giggled in a way that Moyra found way too cutesy. "Oh Driskoll!" she exclaimed, "You're so nice, always looking out for me!"

"Always looking out for- we just met yesterday!" Driskoll pointed out in an exasperated tone, throwing his hands up.

"Anyway," she said, as if he hadn't spoken, "I should probably be getting home now. My mommy will wonder where I've been. Bye-bye!" She waved happily to Driskoll, then skipped away, humming a little tune to herself. Driskoll stared after her.

"I feel like I'm going insane when she's around," he said, finally.

Moyra snickered. "Was that your new girlfriend, Driskoll?" she asked, suppressing a laugh. Driskoll glared at her.

"New stalker is more like it," he grumbled, "I can't believe she followed us home last night. She could've followed us right to the fire!"

"It's water under the bridge now, little brother," Kellach assured him, also trying not to laugh, "Anyway, we should get going. I want to see that castle before too many people show up and it gets crowded."

"Ah, we don't have to worry about that," Moyra explained, gently linking an arm with him, "The whole of Curston could be there and it still wouldn't be crowded. Lousy festival people and their stupid over-sized castle."

…

Just outside of Curston, beyond the Old gate, wizards from out of town had conjured up a large, pink-tinted castle especially for the Festival. Once the month was over, they would use their magic to get rid of it, as if it had never been there. The three friends often complained about how big it was, as it could easily fit everyone single person in Curston, plus any visitors inside just the main foyer alone. So they saw no need for all the extra hallways, sitting rooms, ballrooms, bedrooms, kitchens, and other rooms that made it many times larger and harder to navigate around other than the wizards from out of town just wanted to show off. Throughout the festival, parties were being held constantly in the main room, and other rooms could be rented out to smaller parties. But there was always a feast that the whole town was expected to show up for on certain days of the Festival.

Something the children had forgotten when they entered the front room and were clearly underdressed for the occasion.

"What day of the Festival is it?" Kellach asked, off-handedly

"The second," Driskoll answered, simply.

Kellach sighed and hit himself. "I totally forgot!" he muttered, "The second day is the day of the opening party! Everyone in Curston is going to be here."

"I still don't know why there's an 'opening party' on the second day of the Festival instead of the first," Moyra muttered, still clutching Kellach's arm. She pressed closer to him.

"So," Driskoll said, stepping forward, "Shall we have a look around?"

The three of them stepped into the room, but as soon as they did, their path was blocked by a familiar face. "Friends!" the badly dressed story teller exclaimed, stepping in front of them.

"By the gods, not this guy again," Moyra scowled, gripping Kellach's arm more tightly.

"Friends! I have arrived to tell you all another fantastic tale!" This time, the man wasn't speaking to the crowd, but directly to the three of them. "My name is-" Moyra was sure the man had a decent enough name, but his outfit was just so ridiculous, that she forgot what it was as soon as he said it. "Today, I will tell you the legend of this marvelous castle that we are now standing in!"

He cleared his throat. "The legend says that this is an enchanted castle of love! Those who share their first kiss together within these walls are destined to remain together forever! But, hear me, my young friends; those who use trickery to get what they want are doomed to a life of sorrow and loneliness. There's more as well! The Festival of Emotions is a very special time for young people. It's a time to share your true feelings with someone. But, there is also a curse for those young people. If, by the time a young adult turns fourteen, they have not shared a loving kiss with another young person at the time of the festival, they are certain to die. A sorrowful and painful death indeed!" He paused to let his words sink in. "Well, then, enjoy yourselves!" Then he danced away, stupid cape billowing behind him.

They waited until he was out of earshot before Driskoll exploded. "He got it wrong again!" he shouted, "First of all, the age is thirteen, not fourteen! Second, of course the castle is enchanted; it was made by wizards! Thirdly, and most importantly, all of it is a baseless story! At least the first one was based on a true story. This one the wizards completely made up so people would be more excited about the holidays!"

"Indeed," Kellach agreed, "I never believed that old story. I mean, just look at me! I'm almost fifteen, and no one's ever kissed me. And nothing horrible has happened to me."

"Well, that's debatable," Driskoll said with a smirk, "But I do agree that you aren't dead yet, at least. That guy really needs to get his facts straight. Now come on, let's go check out the party." He led the way into the room, where long tables of food had been set up in the back and smaller, rounder tables were scattered around. A band played and a large clearing had been made for dancing. Moyra saw Driskoll glance at the tables of food.

"I'm going to see if I can find anything unusual over here," he said to Moyra and Kellach, "Don't wait up for me." Then he took off directly for the food.

Moyra sighed and looked at Kellach, who was staring after his brother, puzzled. "Shall we walk around and see if we can find that shadow?" she asked him. He nodded, so she linked her arm with his again and they started walking the perimeter of the room.

As they walked, scanning the room for anything unusual, Moyra thought back to the story the Stupid Looking Man had told them. About sharing a first kiss, and sharing her true feelings. She scoffed silently to herself. _Maybe it should be called the Festival of Sharing Way Too Much,_ she thought bitterly. Suddenly, she felt like a rock had just dropped into her gut. She looked at Kellach, whose keen eyes were carefully scanning the crowd. She cleared her throat.

"Um, Kellach," she said quietly. Kellach turned and looked at her. "May I please talk to you privately?" She cast her eyes over the dancing crowd. "Where there aren't any people around?"

"Er, sure, Moyra," Kellach replied, "Let's try to find an empty room. Should we tell Driskoll where we're going?"

"Nah," Moyra scoffed, looking over at the food table, "If I know Driskoll, he'll be there for quite a while." They both laughed and headed out of the room, looking for one that was empty. After walking through countless of rooms with private parties, drunk people, couples making out, and horny teenagers, they finally found a room that wasn't being used, and was quite a considerable distance away from anything else, so they wouldn't be disturbed.

The room they had chosen was what appeared to be a large sitting room. Many elegant chairs and couches were spread out in a semi-circle around a huge fireplace. There were many pointless and expensive looking decorations sitting about.

Kellach looked around the large room for a moment to make sure they were truly alone before turning to Moyra. "All right," he said to her, "What did you want to talk to me about?"

While they had been walking, Moyra had thought long and hard about what she wanted to say. She was positive she had the words right, it was just a matter of working up the nerve to actually say them. She took a deep breath.

"It's not that I wanted to talk to you about something," she started, "I… I wanted to ask for a favor from you. A-and you can say no, if you want."

"Ok," Kellach replied, his calm blue gaze never leaving her face.

Moyra bit her lower lip and looked away. _Stop staring at me like that!_ She wanted to scream at him, _You're making this so much harder!_

She absent-mindedly started pulling at a loose thread on one of the couches, refusing to look at him. "Um, I was just thinking about that story that guy told us," she said, stumbling a little over her words, "And how you said that no one's ever kissed you." She paused, but Kellach said nothing. She tried to give a little laugh. "Not that I give any credibility to that guy." She waited for Kellach to agree with her, but he continued to be silent. She cast a quick glance at him to make sure he was actually paying attention and in that brief moment, her green eyes met his blue ones. She turned away again.

 _Damn it, Kellach! Say something!_ She thought bitterly.

"So, I was just wondering…" she continued, picking at the thread some more, "Um, if it's all right, of course… and it wouldn't mean anything! It would just be as friends… to get it over with…" She was slightly annoyed that Kellach continued to not say anything. She sighed slightly, deciding to just say it.

"I want to kiss you," she said, quietly. She looked up at Kellach, who finally averted his own gaze to the floor. She felt herself hold her breath in anticipation.

Kellach shuffled his feet a little. "Why do you want to kiss me?" he asked eventually, "Why not ask Driskoll or something?"

"Because, Driskoll would make it all weird," Moyra replied, relieved that she at least had an answer for that, "Besides, you're older than both of us. I-I've always sort of wondered what it would be like to kiss someone older than me. And other than you, I don't really know any other boys."

Kellach said nothing, but continued to stare at the floor. Moyra suddenly felt a sense of panic and embarrassment rising up inside her, and she felt her eyes grow a little watery. She turned away so Kellach couldn't see her.

"Maybe this was a mistake," she muttered, fighting to keep her voice steady, "We should just go."

"No, wait!" Kellach called out quickly, grabbing her shoulder before she could walk away. He gently turned her around. "Yes," he said.

Moyra stared at him. "W-what?" she asked, cautiously.

"Yes, we can kiss," he told her, "I mean, it would just be to get it over with, right? It wouldn't really mean anything?"

"Of course!" Moyra replied hastily, finally letting out the breath she had been holding in. "And it's not like we would tell anyone about it. It would just be between us."

"Right," Kellach mumbled. He looked up as Moyra stepped closer to him. "Just as friends?" he repeated.

"Just as friends," Moyra assured him.

Then she gently leaned in and kissed him fully on his mouth. Instantly she felt more excited and her heart raced. She carefully held his shoulders and leaned him in more so she could kiss him more deeply. She closed her eyes and parted her lips slightly so she could taste his breath, which, in her opinion, tasted nice and sweet. She could feel Kellach shaking slightly, but right now she didn't care. She pressed herself closer, so that she could press every inch of her body against his. She knew that this was probably far too intense for a simple first kiss between friends, but at the moment she didn't care at all. All she cared about was making this kiss as long and powerful as possible. They were alone, and Moyra didn't need anyone else but Kellach right now. She felt like, at the moment, Kellach belonged to her and her alone. She was aware of Kellach leaning back a little, but that just made her kiss him more deeply. Using her own lips, she parted his mouth slightly so she could taste him better. A sensational feeling overcame her as his breath flowed through her. She could feel her own heart beat match his and she grew a bit more excited. Just when she thought that her excitement would pour over, she felt him gently push her away. Reluctantly, she pulled her mouth away from his, breathing heavily as he did the same. Neither of them spoke for several moments.

"Well," Moyra eventually said, awkwardly looking at the floor, "Now that we have that out of the way, I guess we can enjoy hating the rest of the festival, huh?"

"Yeah," Kellach said, breathlessly, "Right." He looked up and over at Moyra. "Come on," he told her, "We should probably get back before Driskoll misses us." With that, he turned and started to head back the way they had come, with Moyra closely following behind.

 **Told ya I like to torment my favorite characters. It's just gonna keep getting better and better from here on out. ;)**


	6. Chapter 6

**I'm going to backtrack to just before the last chapter ended so we can get Kellach's feelings about the kiss. And I'll tell you right now; it's** _ **waaaaay**_ **different than Moyra's version.**

 **Anyway, here ya go.**

 **CHAPTER 6**

Kellach didn't really know how to feel about Moyra's proposal for a kiss. It was true that neither of them had ever been kissed, but Kellach didn't know that she cared at all. Did it really bother her that much? He suspected that the stupid looking guy's stories were getting to her, but he didn't say so out loud. When he finally agreed, he couldn't tell if he had made the right decision or not.

And then she kissed him. Kellach felt his heart speed up as Moyra leaned in closer. He had figured it would just be a quick kiss, just to get it over with, but no. Then she pressed closer, and he felt her against every inch of his trembling body. He was aware of the fact that she seemed to be growing more and more excited the longer she kissed him. He took a small step back, and she kissed him harder. Then Moyra parted Kellach's mouth with her own, and Kellach had to stop himself from flinching when he felt her tongue slide down his throat. He wasn't even sure Moyra was aware that she was doing that, as she seemed content taking in his breath as he exhaled. Kellach suddenly felt her start to shake, and then he couldn't take it anymore. He pushed her away from him as gently as he could, and she finally pulled out of the kiss.

As Moyra stared awkwardly at the ground, breathing heavily, Kellach took the opportunity to glance down at his hand. The ring on his finger seemed to be shining brighter than before, and he felt a cold shill run down his spine. Had this really been just a kiss between friends to get it over with? Or had it been something more?

…

After getting lost several times and even coming across one room which they refused to enter due to all the moaning coming from it, Kellach and Moyra finally found their way back to the main room. People were still dancing and feasting as if no time had passed. Driskoll spotted them and carefully picked his way through the crowd over to them.

"Where were you guys?" Driskoll asked, his arms stuffed with sweets, "I was looking everywhere for you!"

"We were trying to find the shadow!" Moyra snapped before Kellach could reply, "Remember? The reason we're here in the first place? Where were you, huh?"

Kellach thought she was being kind of harsh, even though it was obvious Driskoll had been at the food table the whole time. But Kellach couldn't be too mad; after all, they hadn't really been looking for the shadow.

When Driskoll didn't answer, Moyra sighed, annoyed. "I'm going to check over here," she announced, "I think there are more rooms this way, and maybe I can find some sort of trace of the shadow." With that, she disappeared into the crowd.

Driskoll stared after her, amazed. "What's she suddenly so upset about?" he wondered.

Kellach shook his head. "I'm not sure," he replied, "It must've been your question or something. I mean, she was fine right after we-" He quickly cut himself off, almost saying out loud what he had promised Moyra he would never talk about. He glanced at Driskoll to see if he had caught his slip up.

He had. He looked at his brother quizzically. "After you what?" he asked, "What were you two doing?"

Kellach mentally kicked himself for letting his words flow so freely. He sighed. "You have to promise you won't tell Moyra that you know," he said seriously.

"Ok," Driskoll replied.

"I want to hear you say it." Kellach looked his brother in the eye.

"I promise I won't tell Moyra."

Kellach nodded, satisfied. "Moyra wanted to talk to me privately, so we went looking for a room that wasn't being used," he began, "After we found one, she said she wanted to kiss me."

Driskoll's eyes widened. "What?" he asked shocked, "But why would she want to kiss you? We're all just friends!"

"I know," Kellach replied in a soft voice, "She said she just wanted to get it over with, and that it wouldn't really mean anything. I think that guy's stories are really getting to her as well. And I didn't want to appear like I don't care about her. So I let her."

Driskoll's jaw fell. He stared at his older brother with something like amazement and envy. "You let her kiss you?" he clarified. Kellach nodded. Driskoll looked down for a moment, then back at Kellach. "What was it like?" he wondered cautiously.

Kellach's eyes wandered down to the floor, and he shuffled his feet slightly. "It was fine, I suppose," he answered quietly, "Until she stuck her tongue down my throat."

Driskoll opened his mouth several times, as if he wanted to say something, but he couldn't think of anything appropriate. It was several moments before he could find anything to say. "Are you all right?" he asked finally.

Kellach sighed. "I'm fine," he replied, "I guess I just never thought that my first kiss would be with Moyra. It's just weird to think that she wanted us to just act like nothing had happened."

Driskoll shook his head, not knowing what to say. "Come on," he said, "Let's go find Moyra and get out of here. I really don't want to be here all day."

…

"Could you guys come with me to see my father in the hospital?" Moyra asked as the three of them walked home, "I want to see how he and mom are doing after the fire."

"Of course we will," Kellach answered before Driskoll could speak, "Should we go right now?"

"If you two don't mind," Moyra said.

"We don't mind at all," Driskoll assured her.

So the three of them walked across the city to where the healing ward was. Kellach never liked going near there. It reminded him of how many people in Curston suffered every day. Moyra led them up the stairs and into the building. A sultry looking elf sat behind the front desk. She didn't even look up as Moyra approached.

"How may I help you?" she asked, not stopping from her paperwork.

"I'm here to see my father, Breddo," Moyra answered calmly, "He was admitted yesterday for severe burns."

The elf flipped through her book, looking for the right file. Finally she found it. "Here we go," she said apathetically, "Breddo. Admitted for burns. Yes. Looks like someone is already with him."

"I know," Moyra sighed, "That's my mom. Can we please just go and see him?"

"Whatever," the elf replied, "He's in room four."

Moyra nodded politely and led the two boys through the door leading to the patients. They easily found room four. Moyra knocked softly on the door and went in with Kellach and Driskoll right behind her. Royma was sitting on a chair next to a bed where Breddo lay. She turned around when she heard the knock, but relaxed when she saw the children.

"Oh, Moyra, it's you," Royma said, a sigh of relief in her voice, "I was wondering when you would come by for a visit. How's Torin's place?"

Moyra shrugged. "It's fine," she answered simply, "How's dad?"

"He's resting at the moment. His burns weren't as bad as I thought, thank the gods," Royma sighed, "He should be fully healed in a day or two. Then we can go…" She paused, and Kellach knew she had been about to say "home." But they no longer had a home to return to, and the thought made Kellach's heart tighten.

Royma sighed. "I'm going to have to use the money I already made to pay for your father's medical bills," she continued, "After that, I don't know what's going to happen." She looked at the floor sadly.

"You can stay with us," Kellach said quietly, "At least until you can get back on your feet. I'm sure our dad wouldn't mind." Moyra looked at him gratefully as Royma turned around again.

"Are you sure?" she asked, "Torin wouldn't mind having all of us in his house? He knows what we're like."

"Moyra is our friend," Driskoll stepped in, "He can't refuse. Besides, he wouldn't cast out a family in need of help. And I don't think you would bother him at all. He's barely home most of the time anyway."

Royma blinked gratefully at them. "Thank you," she said, "Both of you. I'm so glad you're both Moyra's friends. She couldn't have better ones." Kellach felt himself blush, and Driskoll looked away, embarrassed.

Then Royma sighed again. "I just wish all of our problems could be solved so easily," she mumbled, "I have no way to make us back any money. If only I had my supplies."

A thought struck Kellach. As Moyra went to sit down next to her mother, he nudged Driskoll, gesturing him out the door. Confused, Driskoll did as he was told as Kellach gently tapped Moyra on the shoulder.

"We're going to go to the market for a little while," he told her, "You should stay here with your parents. We'll meet you later back at the house."

Moyra nodded and turned back to her mother. Driskoll was waiting for Kellach as he left the room. He waited until they were out of the building before speaking.

"Why are we going to the market?" he asked his older brother.

"You still have your allowance money on you, right?" Kellach wondered, instead of answering.

"Yes."

"Good," Kellach nodded. "We're going to the market so we can purchase the supplies Royma needs so she can knit."

Driskoll nodded in understanding. "So she can make her scarves and other things to sell during the festival," he said, "That way she can start making back some of her money."

"Exactly," Kellach replied, glad that his brother got it so quickly. Sometimes Driskoll could be a little thick headed.

The market in Main Square was usually crowded, but during the Festival of Emotions, it was even more so. Kellach and Driskoll had to fight their way through a huge motionless crowd to try to get to the edge of the square where Kellach knew a merchant sold knitting supplies. After finally getting out of the ocean of shouting people, Kellach saw the merchant he was looking for, sitting quietly at the end of the street. He grinned.

"Come on, Driskoll," Kellach said, turning back to the mob, "Stop playing with the people and let's go get the supplies." He reached into the crowd and grabbed his brother's shirt, pulling him out of the mass. Driskoll looked a little rough.

"I think someone tried to bite me," he muttered, looking back at the people.

Kellach didn't say anything, but simply turned and walked towards the merchant. He heard Driskoll sigh with annoyance and run to catch up to him. The merchant was a kindly old man who looked up as they approached.

"Aren't you Torin's boys?" he asked as they reached him, "I see you two often playing with Royma's daughter."

"Yes, sir," Kellach said politely, "That would be us."

"That's actually why we're here," Driskoll put in, "We're here to pick up Royma's supplies for her. And don't worry, we can pay you."

"Oh, what pleasant and polite boys you are!" the merchant exclaimed, "So nice of you to help a woman in need! I heard about Royma's place and the fire. She must be in a bad place right now. You boys are so kind." He stood up and walked over to his wagon, carefully gathering all the supplies of Royma's order. He divided it up and placed a pile into either boys' arms. They paid the man and started walking home.

That's when something caught Kellach's eye and he stopped. Driskoll nearly collided with him, and before Driskoll could say anything, Kellach placed his pile into his brother's arms.

"Wait here," he told him, before walking over to different stand.

"Where are you going?" Driskoll called, unable to see over the large pile of supplies in his arms, "Why do I have to wait? Kellach? Where did you go?"

Kellach made his purchase and turned back to his brother who was desperately calling out for him. He sighed and quickly walked back over to him, taking half the pile again before Driskoll could drop everything on the ground.

"All right," he said, with no explanation on what he had just bought, "Let's go home."

He heard Driskoll grumble something, but he chose to ignore him. The rest of the way home was spent in silence.

…

When they got home, Kellach and Driskoll put the supplies down on the table in their sitting room and Kellach wrote a quick note to Moyra and Royma. Then, while Driskoll settled down on the couch, Kellach went upstairs with the other purchase he had made and put it in the closet. Then he walked back downstairs and passed Driskoll, who had fallen asleep on the couch. Being careful not to wake him, Kellach made his way to the kitchen. As soon as he entered, he jumped, his heart pounding.

Alexandra was sitting at the table, seat tipped back with her boots up on the table. She was sipping out of a mug and looked to be totally at home. Kellach stared at her.

"How did you get into my house?" he asked her.

She looked up, a keen look in her eye. "I'm a wizard, Kellach," she explained, "I know how to unlock a door. That's at least one thing I do know how to do." There was no hint of the malice she had had in her voice when had spoken to Driskoll that morning.

Kellach sighed and walked over, shoving her feet off the table. "I thought we had agreed to meet tomorrow for your first tutoring lesson," he wondered.

"Yes, but I was bored," she reasoned casually, "I figured I would just let myself in and wait for you to get home. And even if you don't want to start right away, I thought I could get to know you a little better." Her eyes sparkled with mischief as she spoke.

"Ok," Kellach replied, sitting down across from her. She scooted her chair so that she was sitting next to him and leaned in to look at him. He slowly leaned away from her and she smiled.

"Your eyes," she said, "They're very pretty. Like pools of sapphire. You must get a lot of stares from the girls."

"Not really," Kellach muttered, not knowing what to make of her compliment. She leaned back, allowing Kellach his space, and smiled again. They talked for a while, with Alexandra making a few more compliments that made Kellach uncomfortable. After a while, Kellach decided to try teaching her some simple spells, starting with a simple little spell that was supposed to make brilliant colored sparks appear. When Alexandra tried it, it just blew up in her face. Kellach sighed and shook his head.

"You're not concentrating hard enough," he told her, "Try it again, but this time really focus. Block out all distractions. This is the key to performing any spell correctly."

Alexandra nodded and took a deep breath. She closed her eyes and chanted under her breath. Suddenly, colored sparks leapt before her and she gasped in surprise.

"I did it!" she exclaimed happily, "I've never managed to do that before!"

"Well done," Kellach said to her. He was surprised when she leaned over and hugged him tight.

"Thank you," she sighed, "You're a much better teacher than Zendric is."

"I don't know if I would say that," Kellach murmured, "I'm just remembering what he taught me. But if you keep this up, I'm sure you'll start doing even more advanced spells in no time."

They practiced for a few more hours until it started getting dark and Alexandra left. She gave him another hug and left, passing Moyra and Royma coming in the front door on her way out. Kellach followed her out to greet them. Moyra had quickly side stepped out of Alexandra's way as she left. She opened her mouth to make a comment as her mother shut the door. But then she spotted the materials on the table.

"What's all of this?" she asked. Kellach silently handed her the note he had written. Moyra and her mother read it over. Then Moyra looked up, tears brimming her eyes. Then she threw her arms around him as Royma smiled.

"Thank you, dear," she said as her daughter hugged him, "You and your brother have done more for us than anyone ever has. I don't know how I could ever thank you enough."

"We were happy to do it," Kellach told her as Moyra silently squeezed the life from him, "We didn't want anything to happen Moyra or her family. She is our best friend after all. Speaking of which, can you please stop trying to crush me in half?"

"Sorry," Moyra said, sheepishly, relaxing her hold.

"I shall start knitting right away," Royma declared, taking up the new knitting needles they had bought for her and sitting down on the couch next to Driskoll, who was still asleep. "I think I can get enough done by the end of the day to sell during the festival tomorrow!"

…

Kellach and Driskoll agreed to let Moyra sleep in their room again that night while Royma slept on the couch downstairs. Kellach again gave his bed to Moyra, but he really didn't mind sleeping on the floor. The only thing that really upset him was knowing that at some point Driskoll was going to get up in the middle of the night for whatever reason and deliberately step on him. The thought made Kellach shiver as he settled down to sleep.

His dreams were broken by a black mist invading his mind. A horrible creature with arms like dead tree branches enveloped him, rooting him to the spot as the black mist swirled all around him.

 _"Kellach,"_ a voice hissed in his ear, _"I'm coming for you. You cannot hide from me. I will turn everyone you know against you. Then, Kellach, I will kill you."_

Kellach shuddered as he felt the creature, whatever it was, press up behind him, its shadowy arms gripping his shoulders. He felt its hot breath on his neck and heard it hissing. Hissing in his ear.

 _"You can try to run, but I will find you. You are mine, Kellach. You will belong to me. And nothing you do will help you escape your fate. I will kill you. I will kill you in the most painful and agonizing way. I want you to suffer."_

Kellach tried to pull away, but the creature gripped him harder. Its long nails dug into his shoulders, making him cry out in pain. The creature laughed an evil hissing laugh.

 _"Kellach…"_ it hissed, _"Kellach…"_

"Kellach!"

He woke with a start, eyes wide, and breathing hard. He was in his own room, on the floor. It had just been a nightmare. There was nothing there. No dark creature hissing about his death or anything.

But then who had said his name?

He started as someone suddenly put a hand over his mouth. He started to struggle, but a soothing voice whispered in his ear.

"Kellach, calm down," Moyra whispered, "It's only me."

She moved her hand away from his mouth and he took a shuddering breath. He rolled over slightly to look at her in the darkness. She was laying next to him on the floor, a gentle hand on his shoulder to calm him. She wasn't wearing a shirt, only a bra, but that didn't really bother Kellach as he already knew she didn't like wearing her shirt to bed. Even in the pitch black night, he could see her green eyes staring down at him.

"Are you ok?" she asked him gently, "You were twitching in your sleep and you looked like you were having a nightmare. Is anything wrong?"

He opened his mouth to respond by saying that everything was fine, but as she stared at him, concerned, he suddenly found himself unable to lie to her.

"The truth is, Moyra, I'm not fine," Kellach sighed, "I was having a nightmare." He felt Moyra press a little closer to him and felt her hand on his shoulder tighten in sympathy. "There was a black mist surrounding me, and an evil creature holding me from behind, keeping me still. It was hissing in my ear, saying it was coming for me, and that it would kill me. It also kept saying that I belonged to it, or something." He silently shook his head. "It was just a dream, but it felt so real."

He was still shaking slightly and he knew Moyra could feel it. Without saying a word, Moyra leaned down and gently kissed him. It wasn't like the kiss from before, this one was soothing and comforting, and Kellach found himself being calmed by the warmth of her lips pressed against his own. His trembling stopped, his breathing slowed, and his heart beat leveled. A moment or two later, she gently pulled away, staring down at him.

"Sorry," she mumbled, "I couldn't think of anything else to do to comfort you."

"It's fine," Kellach replied, "That did actually calm me down. Thank you, Moyra."

He saw her smile in the darkness. "Kellach," she said quietly, "I have to tell you something. I-" She broke off suddenly, taking a sharp breath and staring at something behind Kellach. He rolled over to look and took a sharp breath.

A large shadow was creeping along the wall over Driskoll's bed. It was slowly taking shape, forming long spindly arms like dead branches, and a cruel smile. As Kellach stared, his trembling starting again, it seemed to be coming out of the wall, slowly reaching for them.

 _"You are mine,"_ a voice seemed to hiss in his head, _"I will kill you, Kellach, and you will die knowing only fear!"_ The voice laughed a quiet evil laugh, then receded into the wall and slithered out the window.

Kellach quickly sat up, staring at the wall where the creature had been. He was aware of Moyra sitting up behind him.

"Kellach?" she asked, quietly.

"That was it," Kellach whispered, "That was the creature from my dream! The Beast of Shadows! It threatened to kill me!" His breathing was harsh and shallow, and his heart was pounding in his chest. He felt Moyra gently wrap her arms around him, but he could not be soothed this time. He tried to struggle away from her.

"Kellach! Calm down!" Moyra hissed at him, "You're fine! The beast is gone! You're ok now! Kellach!" She tried to get a hold of him, but he fought her away. Finally, she grabbed his shoulders, whipped him around and forced him to the ground, pinning his shoulders to the floor. She gently moved herself on top of him so he couldn't get away and thrust her face in front of his, forcing him to look directly into her eyes.

"Look at me, Kellach," Moyra whispered harshly to him, "Calm down. I'm here for you. I won't let that thing hurt you. Just look into my eyes, ok?"

Kellach forced himself to relax, staring into Moyra's bright green eyes. Her gaze was gentle and calming, and she smelled slightly of cinnamon for some reason. She leaned closer to whisper in his ear.

"Relax," she said, "I'm here for you. I love you, Kellach. You're my best friend. We'll get through this together. Just focus on me."

A spark of something lit in Kellach's heart, but he didn't know what. He nodded slowly as his shivering started to fade. He felt Moyra's breath flow into him and it tasted of apples and brown sugar. He wondered why her presence was suddenly so over powering, and then he realized that her lips were very gently touching his own. Not enough to really be considered a kiss, but close enough that he could feel her. Shuddering slightly, Kellach forced himself to breath regularly. He looked into her eyes again, and he felt her gently run her fingers through his hair. His heart beat started to return to normal and he found himself getting lost in his friend's eyes. They stared at each other for a long while. Finally, Kellach sighed.

"I think I'm fine now," he said in a soft voice, "Thank you for calming me down again. It's strange; I've never had a panic attack before now. That shadow is more dangerous than I initially thought."

"That's probably why Zendric told us not to go looking for it," Moyra said. Suddenly realizing that she was still laying on top of him, Moyra blushed and slid off of Kellach. "Sorry," she muttered, "I couldn't get you to hold still."

Kellach nodded and thought for a moment. "What did you mean when you said you love me?" he wondered. He couldn't really see Moyra that well in the dark now that her face wasn't in front of his, but he was sure that she grew a bit paler.

"I mean just what I said," she said, a little vaguely, "I love you. You're my best friend. You and Driskoll; I love you both. That's probably why the ring won't come off your finger. I love you because you two are my best friends."

Kellach nodded, satisfied with that answer. Suddenly, Moyra moved like she was going to go back to bed, but Kellach quickly caught her arm. "Wait, Moyra! Please don't leave me!" he begged.

Moyra silently slid back down to the floor next to him. She didn't say anything as she moved under the blanket with him and pressed herself gently against him. He had rolled around to face her and now he felt her slightly bare chest pressing along the front of his robe. Ignoring that, he closed his eyes, and when he did, he felt Moyra gently press her lips to his. His eyes opened again, but Moyra had already pulled away and was now resting with her head just under his chin. Kellach sighed and closed his eyes again.

He was completely unaware that someone had been watching them the entire time.

 **This chapter was a lot longer than I meant it to be. Oh well.**

 **Anyway, tell me what you think of Kellach's side of things! Also, who do you think was the one watching them? Why? The answers might be revealed in the next chapter, so stay tuned! Also, read and review!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Even though I just did one with her, I'm putting this chapter in Moyra's POV. Got a problem with it? Too bad.**

 **Anyway, here's your chapter.**

 **CHAPTER 7**

When Moyra woke the next morning, she found herself still pressed up against Kellach, who was still fast asleep and breathing peacefully. Moyra was glad that he seemed to be undisturbed by nightmares now, and she snuggled a little closer to him. The early morning light shown through the window, casting a soft light on Kellach's face. Moyra took a sharp breath and pressed her face into his robes. She silently reflected on last night, thinking about how close she had come to telling him. Telling him everything. But then the shadow had appeared and Kellach went into shock. Then Moyra thought. Had that been just chance? Or was something else working their powers?

Something compelled Moyra to look up from where she lay on the floor next to Kellach, and was surprised to see Driskoll staring down at her. She blinked at him as neither of them said anything.

"What are you doing lying next to my brother?" Driskoll wondered in a quiet voice as to not to wake Kellach.

Moyra felt herself blush, realizing how this must look to Driskoll. She tried to think of something to say, but then she decided to just tell the truth.

"Kellach was twitching in his sleep," she was whispered to him, "So I woke him up to comfort him. But then we saw the beast of shadows, and he… he seemed to have a panic attack or something. He went into total shock. So, I was just lying with him to calm him down. That's all." She looked away slightly. "Nothing happened."

Driskoll stared at her, concern showing in his eyes. "He went into shock?" he asked, "Like, trembling and rapid heartbeat and everything? But Kellach never has panic attacks! I mean, he's been paralyzed by fear before, but not like that!"

Moyra shook her head in confusion and clutched the front of Kellach's robes. He had never been paralyzed by fear before. That was odd enough. But she had been able to calm him down, just by staring into his eyes. Did that mean anything?

A few hours later the sun was higher in the sky and all three of them got out of bed. They had decided to visit Zendric today and see if he had learned anything new. So after finishing their breakfast, they hurried over to Zendric's tower.

"Ah! You three have excellent timing," Zendric told them when they arrived, "I was just about to call on you."

"Have you learned anything new about the beast of shadows?" Driskoll asked eagerly.

"Indeed I have," Zendric replied, letting them in, "I have not yet learned its weakness. But I have found some very important information that you three need to hear."

He waited until the three had settled themselves comfortably before speaking. "While doing my research, I learned a few things about what attracts the beast," he said, "It seems to be attracted to people with stronger emotions than others. Those who feel strongly for someone are more likely to make themselves a target to its evil schemes."

Moyra had to stop herself from gasping as Zendric continued. "I also learned that some people are immune to its influence," he told them, "The beast can never control them or their emotions. But, at the same time, those individuals are strongly affected by its evil and become paralyzed with fear in its presence. They start having a horrible panic attack; shaking with fear, breathing wildly, and trying to fight off anyone near them." Out of the corner of her eye, Moyra saw Kellach stiffen, and she herself felt her heart speed up. That's what happened to Kellach last night! "The only people who can calm such fear are ones who are very close to that person's heart. Only they can cut through the evil and restore peace to that person's mind."

No one said anything. Moyra could feel her heart race and she saw Kellach stare at the ground. It was Driskoll who spoke.

"Is there anything else?" he asked the old wizard. Zendric looked at him.

"There is," he replied, "I have also learned something very disturbing. The beast can change its form and disguise itself."

"Change its form?" Moyra repeated, "You mean like make itself look like someone else?"

"Indeed. But unlike other shape-shifters, the beast of shadows has one flaw that enables people to see through its disguise," Zendric explained, "While it is disguised, the beast will not have a shadow."

"So, if we see anyone without a shadow that means they're the beast?" Driskoll asked hopefully.

"It will not be as simple as that," the old wizard told them, "The beast of shadows is a very clever creature. It will know to avoid standing anywhere where a shadow would be noticeably missing. And during a time like this, with so many people bustling around Curston, no one's going to be paying attention to someone's shadow."

"Well, we can still try," Kellach muttered, speaking for the first time.

Zendric gave them a hard stare. "Now listen to me," he said, "All three of you. I know I said it before, but it bears repeating. Do not go looking for the shadow beast. It is very dangerous and will use your own emotions against you. You are not to search for it, understand?" All three of them nodded. "Good. Now leave me. I have more research to do."

The three of them left the tower feeling more confused and helpless than before. They started walking towards home, discussing what they should do.

"Maybe we're just not thinking about this in the right way," Kellach pondered, "I think we should-" But before he could finish his sentence, he let out a gasp, tripping over something, and falling to the ground. Moyra cried out and was instantly at his side, while Driskoll stared in surprise.

"Serilynne? What are you doing here?" Driskoll asked.

The little girl from before stood before them, smiling up at Driskoll. She stepped over Kellach, completely ignoring him and Moyra to stand in front of her crush. "Hi, Driskoll!" she greeted in her annoying high pitched voice, "I saw you going into the wizard's house and I decided to wait outside for you!"

While the girl screeched, Moyra took a moment to glance down at her feet. She was very disappointed when she saw that Serilynne had a shadow, which meant she wasn't the beast of shadows, which also meant she couldn't stick her with her dagger. She looked down at Kellach who was struggling to get up from the ground. Moyra crouched down next to him.

"Are you ok?" she asked him.

"I'm fine," Kellach muttered, clutching her for support.

"Why do you keep following me?" Driskoll said to the girl, struggling to keep his voice calm, "Don't you have anything better to do?"

Serilynne giggled in an annoying way that Moyra hated.

"So anyway," she said, ignoring Driskoll's questions, "I heard you talking to the wizard about a shadow beastie and I thought I could help you!"

Driskoll rolled his eyes and sighed, while Moyra helped Kellach to his feet. "That's really nice of you, Serilynne," he said, "But I don't think you could really help us at all. After all, the beast of shadows is very dangerous."

"But I know where it is!" Serilynne exclaimed, "I know where it lives! I've seen it! Every time it leaves your house, I follow it, and it keeps going to the castle outside of town! Even at night when no one is there! Creepy, huh?"

"You've seen it leave our house?" Driskoll asked, a little shocked, "You've been stalking me that long?"

But Kellach seemed unbothered by this information. "So the beast lives in the castle," he muttered to himself, "Interesting. I did think it was a little odd that the shadow suddenly appeared when the castle did."

"Do you think we should go find it?" Moyra asked him, "Maybe we should try searching the castle at night? That seems to be where the beast hangs out when it's done terrorizing people."

Kellach looked at her. "That's what I thinking," he said, rubbing his chin, "If we go investigate, we could catch it off guard."

"We're not actually thinking of doing this, are we?" Driskoll asked, surprised, "Can we really trust what this little girl says?" He paused to shake off Serilynne who had latched herself onto his leg.

"I don't see why she would have any reason to lie to us," Kellach reasoned, "Perhaps we should take it to a Silver Dragon vote? All in favor of searching the castle tonight?" Kellach, Moyra, and even Serilynne all raised their hands. Driskoll glared at them.

"Fine," he hissed, "We'll go into the ugly pink castle tonight."

As they started walking back home, saying a quick good bye to Serilynne, Moyra suddenly remembered something.

"I'll meet you boys back at the house," she told them, "I just remembered I promised my mom I would check on my dad today while she's at the market."

She bid farewell to her friends and quickly ran towards the healing ward. When Moyra got in to see Breddo, she was quite pleased to see him sitting up and looking around, and appeared to be quite well.

"Moyra!" Breddo exclaimed, "So good to see you, my girl! I was hoping you would come by!"

"Hi daddy," Moyra greeted, giving him an affectionate hug, "How are you feeling?"

"I'm doing well," he replied, "The clerics said I could go home tomorrow." He paused and looked at her. "So, Torin is really letting us stay with him?"

"Torin isn't all bad just because he's a watcher, dad," Moyra insisted, feeling a need to defend her friends' father, "He's willing to help out those less fortunate. Besides, I'm friends with his boys, there's no way he could reject us."

Breddo chuckled. "That's my girl," he laughed, "How are those boys, anyway?"

"They're fine," Moyra sighed, "They went out and bought mom more supplies for her knitting yesterday so she could sell her wares today."

"Oh! That was awfully nice of them," Breddo said, surprised. Moyra guessed that he had never had anyone show his family such overwhelming kindness before. He cleared his throat.

"So, your mother said she gave you your grandmother's promise ring," he said, "Do you have it with you? I would like to see it."

Moyra felt herself growing warmer and she looked away. "Um, no, I don't have it with me," she mumbled.

"What? Did you sell it or something?" Breddo wondered.

Moyra grew hotter. "No, I didn't sell it," she replied, refusing to look her father in the eye, "Er, Kellach has it now."

"Is he holding it for you?" Breddo asked, not getting it. Moyra shook her head. Suddenly, he got it. "Ah! You _gave_ it to him! Ha! Well, I didn't expect you to choose your life partner so soon! You could have thought about it a little bit!"

"Kellach is my friend, dad!" Moyra grumbled, "He's not 'my life partner!' I put the ring on him as a joke, and, because he's my friend, it won't come off! That's all!" She felt herself blush. "There's nothing going on between us."

Breddo put up his hands, chuckling. "Now, now, my girl, calm down," he said, "I'm only teasing. I know those two boys are your friends. Don't worry, I won't tease ya while your around him."

"Thanks, dad," Moyra grunted.

…

When Moyra got back to Torin's house, she was careful not to make any noise, as she could hear Alexandra practicing in the kitchen with Kellach, and Driskoll was on the couch sharpening his sword. She decided to take the opportunity to freshen up, as she hadn't really gotten the chance since her house burned down. After a quick wash, she walked into the boys' room and was surprised to see a neat pile of clothes lying at the edge of Kellach's bed. There was a note attached to the pile. Curious, Moyra picked it up and read it.

 _Moyra, I know you probably don't have a lot of spare clothes since your house burned down, so while Driskoll and I were at the market, I bought you some new ones. There's also a dress in there if you ever want to actually dress fancy. Feel free to wear them or not. I won't be terribly offended if you don't want to. Enjoy. –Kellach_

Moyra looked down at the pile, her heart swelling with joy. Kellach went out and bought all of these nice clothes just for her? She carefully removed her old clothes and tried on all the new ones, one after another. Moyra had no idea how Kellach knew her size, but they all fit her perfectly. And each outfit seemed to fit her personality perfectly. Then she picked up the dress. It was made of a soft warm material and was a brilliant violet color with wool embroidering the ends of the sleeves and bottom of the dress. Tiny diamonds were stitched into the sleeves in intricate patterns. It was the loveliest dress Moyra had ever seen. She put it on and admired herself. For the first time in a long while, she felt beautiful.

Suddenly the door opened and Moyra turned to see Kellach stepping into the room. When he saw her, he opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted by Moyra running over and throwing her arms around him. She wrapped her arms tightly around him, pulling him close in a warm hug.

"So I see you got my note," Kellach joked in a slightly choked voice.

"I love them, Kellach," Moyra told him, fighting back tears, "You're always so good to me."

"I just want you to be happy," Kellach said, quietly, "You deserve to have something nice to wear and have a bit happiness in your life."

Moyra had an overwhelming urge to kiss him right there, but she resisted it. She felt him fidget a little, but she didn't care. Why did he have to be so nice to her and make things more complicated?

"Moyra," she heard him say in a very quiet voice, "You look very beautiful."

Taking a sharp breath, Moyra nearly squeezed the life out of her friend. She only stopped when she heard him start to choke.

"Sorry," Moyra said shyly, blushing slightly.

"It's all right," Kellach said, regaining his breath, "I've got to stop doing nice things for you. You're going to crush me in half one of these days."

…

That night, when Torin and Royma had fallen asleep, Kellach, Driskoll, and Moyra snuck out of the house to go to the castle. Kellach hadn't taken more than two steps when he tripped and fell to the ground.

"Why does this always happen to me?" he cried out angrily as Serilynne freed herself from under his legs. Driskoll let out a sigh of annoyance.

"Serilynne, what are you doing here?" he asked, "You're not going to the castle with us."

"Yes, I am!" Serilynne replied happily, "You said I could!"

"I said no such thing!" Driskoll claimed.

"So you're the one who put these ridiculous ideas in my sister's head," said a familiar voice. Moyra inhaled sharply when Alexandra stepped out of the shadows. "I should've known."

"What are you doing here?" Moyra asked her, trying not to sound hostile. While she asked, she quickly helped Kellach to his feet.

"Serilynne is my little sister," Alexandra explained, "She told me she going out on a 'secret mission' or something, so I had to follow her and make sure she didn't do anything stupid." She glared over at Driskoll. "Figures it was you who convinced her to do it."

"I never told her to come with us!" Driskoll snapped at her.

"It's true, Alexandra," Kellach told her, "Serilynne has an infatuation for my brother, and I think she just wants to make sure he's ok."

"She didn't need to know that," Driskoll grumbled.

Alexandra turned to Kellach and her eyes softened. "All right, Kellach, if you say so." She turned to her little sister. "Come on, we should be getting home."

"No!" Serilynne refused stubbornly. She folded her arms in emphasis. Alexandra sighed and looked at Kellach.

"Would you mind terribly if we came with you?" she asked, " _This one_ won't budge unless she gets her way."

"Actually," Driskoll started, a rejection already on his lips.

"No, we wouldn't mind," Kellach replied, talking over his brother, "It will be helpful to have extra eyes to find what we're looking for." He looked at Driskoll and Moyra, warning them to be silent.

Moyra clenched her teeth. "Yeah, we would _love_ to have you with us," she hissed, trying to sound friendly.

The five of them quietly snuck through the town and out to the castle. Moyra was unsurprised that the giant doors were unlocked and unsecured in anyway. It was only a large castle filled with valuable décor and furniture, why should anyone feel a need to guard it?

The front room was almost completely dark, save for a few torches burning on the walls. Without any people or lighting, the room was quite unsettling to Moyra, but she refused to show any fear. They took a few steps forward and the doors suddenly closed behind them. Moyra heard Serilynne gasp.

"That was creepy!" she exclaimed, rather happily, "Do you think this castle is haunted?"

"I highly doubt that," Alexandra muttered, "The wind probably blew them shut."

They looked around the room for a moment and Moyra noticed something she hadn't noticed when there were a bunch of people there. A grand staircase in the back of the room led up to a new level that Moyra hadn't known existed. Curious, she walked over to the stairs and heard the others following her.

"I didn't realize these stairs were here before," she said, "I wonder where they lead?"

"Maybe we should split up," Driskoll suggested, "Two or three of us could go explore upstairs and the others look around on this floor."

"I think that's a sensible idea," Kellach replied, nodding, "Alexandra, would you-"

"I call Driskoll!" Serilynne exclaimed before Kellach could finish. She grabbed Driskoll's arm and started dragging him away.

"Oh no," Driskoll muttered as he was led away, "Please. Guys, help me."

"Bye, Driskoll," Moyra said simply as Driskoll groaned.

Once they were gone, Moyra, Kellach, and Alexandra turned and climbed the stairs. At the top there was a long dark hallway that led to many different rooms. They started walking down it and into the rooms. The first one was what appeared to be a dining room, and a very large one at that. A long table, long enough to seat at least fifty or more people stood in the middle surrounded by many unused chairs. What drew the eye, however, was not the table, but a large painting stretching the length of the room. It depicted some sort of horrible war going on, with people and orcs and other creatures slaying each other in a gruesome blood bath. Moyra felt like gagging looking at it.

"What a repulsive painting!" she commented hatefully, "Who would want to dine while that scene is hanging over them?"

"It does look like it would be more at home in a torture chamber than a dining room," Kellach agreed.

"We should move on," Alexandra suggested, "This room is unnerving."

Most of the rooms they explored looked to be private party rooms that people could rent out during the festival. They were all relatively the same, save for a few color or decoration differences. But then they came across a room that took Moyra by surprise.

It was an enormous bedroom, one that could easily fit a giant. The bed in the corner was large enough to comfortably fit an entire family and still leave room for each of them. Chairs and a couch were spread out in a semi circle around a low table that was stacked with papers of some kind. A long dresser stood against one wall and stretched the length of the room. A giant mirror and another painting (this one of two people embracing in way too much love) hung above it. Also, from where Moyra stood, she could see another door leading into some sort of indoor bath house. She couldn't see much from where she was, but she guessed that it was as large and impressive as this bedroom was. She took a step into the room.

"Why is this bedroom so huge?" she wondered, "You could fit a family of half-orcs in here! What is the point of this room?"

Looking at Kellach, he made a face that said he knew the answer to her question, but didn't want to say it out loud. Alexandra, however, looked smug.

"I know why this room is so big," she sneered, "I learned about it last year from this strangely dressed man."

"Please don't say it out loud," Kellach muttered.

They entered the room and started looking about, trying to find anything useful. As Moyra wandered over to the dresser, she looked up at the painting again. The couple in the painting was completely naked, and it made Moyra uncomfortable. She was about to turn away and not look at it anymore, but then she noticed something odd. A strange black shadow was rising up behind the man as he was embraced with his lover. Moyra cocked her head to one side. Was the shadow… moving? She gasped as it suddenly started to take form. She backed away slowly, unable to speak as the shadow pulled itself away from the painting. Moyra knew in an instant exactly what it was.

The beast of shadows.

It started to form into a hideous creature with a featureless head with only a wide grinning mouth, and beady red eyes. It had long sharp claws, and a long tail that reminded Moyra of a whip. It grinned evilly at Moyra, slowly slinking forward.

Finally, Moyra found her voice. "Kellach!" she screamed.

Kellach whipped around and saw the creature. Instead of panicking, he raised his arms in the air and muttered under his breath. A flash of light burst from his hands and struck the shadow square in the chest. Hissing, it stumbled backwards, and leaned against the dresser. It glared at Moyra and Kellach, and ignored Alexandra who stood frozen with fear.

" _Cocky boy!"_ the beast hissed angrily, _"You're dead!"_ It crouched down, preparing to leap, but before it could, a spear of light shot by Kellach went straight through it. Again, the beast flew backwards into the wall.

 _"Fine! I see I underestimated you! But that will not happen again!_ " The beast of shadows, still hissing, slowly sunk back into the wall. _"Next time I see you, Kellach, I'll rip your heart out! And that goes for your friend and your brother! You're all doomed!"_ Then the shadow raced along the wall and flew out the door into the hallway before anyone could anything.

Moyra stood, breathing hard. She looked over at Kellach, who looked shocked that he had managed to fight the beast off. She went over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder while Alexandra quickly went to check the hallway.

"Are you all right?" she asked him.

Kellach slowly nodded. "I'm not sure how I was able to do that," he said slowly, "I mean, I was terrified, and I had a deep desire to run away or something. But when I saw you in danger, I knew I had to do something. I couldn't just freeze up or it would hurt you."

When he saw her in danger, he was able to act. Something stirred in Moyra, but she couldn't decide what it was. Could this encounter possibly hold the secret to defeating the beast? Zendric had said that a person paralyzed with fear could only be calmed by someone close to them. Perhaps those same people could prevent the fear in the first place?

Moyra shook her head, trying to think. She only hoped that Driskoll had discovered something important. Maybe something to confirm her theory.

 **And that's where I'll end it for now. Next chapter will be with Driskoll again. Until then, stay tuned. Peace!**


	8. Chapter 8

**I'm not sure exactly when this story takes place. I've finally read the final two books, so knowing things from that it can't really take place after them. Whatever. It's just a fan fiction anyway, so who cares? Anyway, Driskoll's stuck with Serilynne, poor boy. Let's see what they find.**

 **CHAPTER 8**

Driskoll sighed with annoyance as he strode down the hall with Serilynne by his side. He hadn't really wanted to come to this creepy castle at night, but the fact that Serilynne and Alexandra followed them there made it worse. He didn't like either of them, and he had imagined himself exploring with Kellach and Moyra like always. If they had to split up, he had wished he could've gone with Moyra so he could have a friend to talk to. But no, he was stuck with _this_ girl.

He glanced down at the tiny girl as she skipped along, completely unaware of the danger that could be around them. Driskoll looked up again, trying to ignore her off-key humming, and stared down the long hallway.

It was sort of odd; most of the hallways in the castle had a bunch of rooms branching off of them, but this hallway just seemed to go on forever. Aside from a few paintings on the wall and the occasional side table, there was really nothing else of interest.

Driskoll considered turning around and heading back, but then he caught sight of an odd painting. It was a small portrait of someone, but Driskoll couldn't see who it was, so he walked over to it while Serilynne stood, waiting. He studied the painting closely. It was of a young woman who looked to be quite beautiful, but something about her was familiar. She also seemed to have a dark look in her eyes, despite the fact that she was smiling. Driskoll cocked his head to one side and leaned in to get a better look.

As he tried to place the face, he heard a sound behind him and turned to look. Serilynne was standing next to a small side table, poking at an expensive looking vase. Driskoll sighed and turned back to the painting.

"Don't touch anything, Serilynne," he called to her, "You might break something."

Suddenly, there was the sound of a door opening and a yelp of fear from Serilynne. Driskoll quickly whipped around and saw that where the girl had been standing before, there was now a trap door in the floor. He walked over to it and peered down. Serilynne was lying on her back a few feet down, looking dazed. Driskoll blinked at her.

"Good job, Serilynne," he praised, "You found a hidden door!"

"Yay!" she moaned from where she lay on the floor.

Driskoll lowered himself into the door and gently landed on the floor beneath right next to Serilynne. He looked around the room they found themselves in. It seemed to be a basement of some sort. The walls and floor were all made of stone and there was nothing but a lone torch lighting the room. A stone door was at the end of the room, almost hidden in shadows.

Driskoll helped Serilynne to her feet, then took the torch off the wall and walked over to the door. He briefly looked back to make sure the girl was following him. With great effort, he pulled the stone door open, which made aloud groaning and grating sound as it slid across the floor. Then he waved the torch in front of them so they could see.

The next room they entered was much worse than the first. It seemed to be a sort of dungeon or torture chamber. Two cells lined one wall, bars running across the length of the room, and Driskoll could easily see many pairs of shackles chained to the wall. He shivered at the sight. The rest of the room wasn't much better. Weapons and torture devices of all kind were scattered around the room. Driskoll couldn't imagine why a castle rented solely for a festival of lovey-dovey stuff would need a torture chamber. He glanced down at Serilynne and was surprised to see that she didn't seem disturbed by any of this at all.

"What an exciting place!" she exclaimed, "Look at all of this amazing stuff! Isn't it neat?"

"Those aren't even sort of the words I would use to describe this place," Driskoll muttered, "Anyway, be careful. All of these instruments are dangerous. They-"

"Instruments?" Serilynne repeated, cutting him off, "Can I play a song with them?" She grabbed the nearest weapon, which happened to be some sort of lance crossed with a sword, and started to put it to her lips.

Driskoll quickly ran over and smacked it out of her hands. "No, you idiot!" he growled, "That's a dangerous weapon! Didn't you hear me say be careful?"

Serilynne put her hands behind her back and looked down sadly. "I'm sorry," she told him, her voice full of sadness.

Driskoll sighed and rubbed his temples. Was this what Kellach had felt like when they were younger and had to keep him out of trouble? Maybe now whenever his older brother got annoyed with him, he would have a point of reference. He looked down at the girl.

"It's ok," he said calmly, "Just don't let it happen again, all right?"

Serilynne brightened instantly. "Ok!" she replied happily.

Sighing again, Driskoll turned to look at the rest of the room. He was quite surprised when he saw the beast of shadows halfway out of the floor. It stared at him, as if it hadn't expected him to turn around in that instant. They stared at each other for a moment more before Driskoll slowly backed away, putting himself between the shadow and Serilynne. The beast quickly recovered from its shock and continued coming out of the floor.

"Serilynne," Driskoll said quietly to the girl behind him, "I'm going to distract it. When I do, you run for those stairs over there behind it and try to find the others."

"But what about you?" she asked, her voice full of concern.

"Don't worry about me," he hissed, "Just go find the others."

As soon as the shadow lunged, Driskoll pulled his sword out and countered it, the steel meeting its claws with a loud clang! Serilynne quickly raced out from behind Driskoll and ran for the stairs. The beast hissed and started to turn, but Driskoll slashed at it with his sword.

"Oh no you don't!" he growled, "Your quarrel is with me!"

The shadow beast turned back to him. _"True,"_ it sneered, _"Too true. Your brother may have been able to fight me off momentarily, but you have no magic. You cannot defeat me!"_

Driskoll ignored the beast's words and slashed at it again. He was satisfied when he sliced its arm and it cried out with pain. The shadow leaped back away from Driskoll's sword.

 _"Fool!"_ it hissed, _"You think you can win? I may not be at my full strength yet, but that doesn't mean I can't utterly destroy you!"_

"Go ahead and try!" Driskoll taunted the beast. He stepped forward, and the shadow, looking a little uncertain, took a step back.

 _"I may let you live for now,"_ it said, _"I'll use your emotions to grow stronger. Then I'll destroy you from the inside out! You can't hide from me! I'll be with you everywhere you go!"_ The shadow suddenly slithered forward, its featureless face inches from Driskoll's own. _"I know all of your secrets, Driskoll,"_ it scowled, _"Your feelings towards your brother. Your feelings for_ her. _All of them. And when you reveal your secrets, I'll be there to absorb the power your words bring. You can't stop me!"_

At the sound of running footsteps charging down the stairs, the beast of shadows quickly retreated into the shadows and rushed out the door where Driskoll and Serilynne had fallen through. Breathing hard, Driskoll turned to the stairs and saw Kellach and the others racing down towards him.

"Are you ok, Driskoll?" Kellach asked when he reached him, "Serilynne said you were fighting the shadow by yourself!"

"I'm fine," Driskoll replied, trying his best to shrug casually, "It said it wasn't at full power, so I was able to fight it off pretty easily."

"I bet you were very brave," Moyra complimented. Driskoll turned away so she couldn't see him blush.

Alexandra, standing a few feet away, looked around the room. "Where are we?" she asked, "Why are all of these weapons here?"

"My guess is that this is a torture chamber where whoever originally owned this castle could place prisoners," Kellach replied. Driskoll looked at him, and he shrugged. "You don't think those wizards actually built this castle do you? Maybe they did, but when the Festival of Emotions comes around they teleport it in from where ever it usually sits. Because no one actually lives here, they rent it out to cities all across the land for their own festivals and parties."

"Huh," Driskoll grunted, "I didn't know that." He thought for a moment. "I bet that stupid looking guy goes around telling people something like that but leaves out really important information. As usual."

"Can we get out of here?" Moyra interrupted, "I think we've gathered enough information for now, and this place is giving me the creeps. Plus I'm starting to get really tired."

"I think maybe that's best idea right now," Kellach agreed, "We should head home."

…

After saying a quick farewell to Serilynne and Alexandra, Driskoll was glad to be rid of them. He wanted to discuss with Kellach and Moyra what they had found, and he didn't want to talk in front the two girls he hated. They snuck into the house, glad that it seemed neither Royma nor Torin had woken and found them gone. They went upstairs to the boys' room and quietly shut the door.

"So did either of you find out anything useful?" Driskoll asked as Moyra settled into Kellach's bed and his brother sat down on the floor.

"Possibly," Kellach replied, "We encountered the beast of shadows as well."

"Yeah, it said you managed to fight it off," Driskoll said. He didn't mention how he wondered how he had been able to do that. He guessed that Kellach was going to tell him, plus he wasn't really supposed to know that Kellach was terrified of the beast.

"The thing is," Kellach started, "I don't think I should have been able to fight it off. I feel like I shouldn't have been able to do anything at all." He turned away from Driskoll, and Driskoll guessed that he couldn't face the shame of showing weakness in the face of such terrible evil. Driskoll wanted to tell him that he didn't think any less of him, but he knew the comment would not be welcome.

"But the beast was going straight for Moyra," Kellach continued, "And when I saw her in danger, I knew I couldn't just stand there and do nothing, so I casted a spell at it."

Driskoll looked over at Moyra, who hadn't said anything yet. She was simply sitting in the bed, staring straight in front of her, with a blank sort of look in her eyes.

"So you were able to fight back when you saw a friend in danger," Driskoll summed up, "That may be something. Maybe we should tell Zendric tomorrow."

"Did you find anything, Driskoll?" Moyra asked, speaking for the first time.

"Besides the torture chamber and the trap door that led to it, not really," he admitted, "I'm still wondering why, even if it had always been there, they didn't get rid of such a horrible place."

"Maybe the wizards didn't know it existed," Moyra suggested.

"Perhaps," Driskoll muttered. The conversation ended, and they all lay down to sleep.

As Driskoll tried to fall asleep, he thought back to what the beast of shadows had said to him. How it knew all of his secrets, his darkest feelings, how it would be with him everywhere he went. Even now, as he closed his eyes, trying to clear his mind, he couldn't help but feel like he was being watched.

 **This chapter is obviously a lot shorter than the past few chapters, but I mostly didn't have many ideas for it. The next chapter will be with Kellach, and then after that it will be Moyra again.**

 **I know how I want this fanfiction to go. I have all the major plot points thought out, I just have to fill in all the gaps so it doesn't move too fast for logic. Next chapter is one of those gaps.**


	9. Chapter 9

**I only have a vague idea of what I want to do with this chapter, because it's the next chapter I really want to get to. I know exactly what's going to happen, but it's another Moyra chapter, and I don't want to get into the habit of making someone get a chapter every other one. So this one is Kellach.**

 **Also, this is more for me, but I want all of my future chapters to be more than two thousand words. That's the kind of author I am; I hate short chapters.**

 **Anyway, here ya go.**

 **CHAPTER 9**

Kellach's dreams were tormented by visions of the shadow. He saw the people he loved, Driskoll, his father, Moyra, being torn apart by vicious claws made of pure evil. And he was helpless to stop it. Suddenly, he felt something forcing him to the ground, and a clawed hand moved across his mouth to keep him from speaking. He also felt a strong muscular arm wrap around his chest to keep him from moving, and a long whip-like tail tie itself around his legs. He was utterly trapped, unable to do anything. Then he heard a hissing voice whisper in his ear.

 _"Look at it, Kellach,"_ the beast of shadows sneered, _"Isn't all of this carnage beautiful? Look at your friends and family dying around you. I did this. I will destroy you all, turning you against each other. But for you, Kellach, I will have the most fun of all. Oh, you have no idea what I have planned for you!"_ There was a pause as the creature laughed, and Kellach shuddered. _"And she will be helping me the whole way! Your heart will be torn apart, and then, my dear Kellach, you will be mine!"_ The beast let out a horrible laugh as Kellach squeezed his eyes shut and tried to struggle against the shadow. But it kept on laughing, and he couldn't do anything but listen to its voice fill his ears.

Suddenly, Kellach felt himself being dragged off the ground by his arm. He gasped awake and clawed at the floor, desperate to fight off his attacker. He was pulled onto his bed and his shoulders were roughly pinned down, keeping him from struggling. Whoever it was leaned over him and pressed a hand to his mouth.

"Kellach, please calm down!" a familiar voice hissed at him, "It's just me! You're ok, it was only a nightmare!"

It took Kellach a moment to realize that the person leaning over him was Moyra. She gently moved her hand away as Kellach tried to regain his breath. He looked up at her as she stared at him, waiting for him calm himself.

"Sorry, Moyra," he murmured, "The beast invaded my dreams and showed me horrible visions of everyone I know dying around me. It was horrible." He shuddered at the memory.

Moyra lifted her hands off his shoulders and allowed him to sit up. "I'm sorry as well," she said quietly, "I shouldn't have been so rough with you. But I couldn't wake you up and you wouldn't calm down." She moved a little closer to him and put her hand on top of his. "Are you all right now?"

Kellach looked down at her hand, then at her. He let out a little sigh. "I think so," he replied, "Thanks for waking me up."

Moyra smiled. "Any time," she said.

Kellach started to slide back down to the floor, but Moyra quickly lashed out and grabbed the front of his robes, pulling him back up. "Oh no you don't," she whispered slyly to him, "You're sharing the bed with me tonight. We can't have you going into another panic attack. And I won't take 'no' for an answer."

Kellach started to object, but Moyra pressed her hand to his mouth, silencing him. She smiled gently at him when she saw the concern in his eyes. "Don't worry," she said softly, "I won't bite. And it's not like I'm going to do anything to you during the night. I'm your friend, Kellach, I just want to make sure you're ok." She removed her hand from his mouth. "Besides, we slept together on the floor last night, and you didn't have any objections then. And you were the one who asked."

That was true, when Kellach thought about it. But somehow the floor felt different. There was plenty of space for both of them, and didn't feel as intimate. But Kellach's bed wasn't really meant to comfortably hold two people, and they would be forced to press right up against each other, perhaps a little closer than Kellach would've liked. But he also had to admit that he didn't want to spend the night alone on the floor, and perhaps having Moyra by his side while he slept would banish the dark visions from his mind. He let out a sigh.

"All right, Moyra," he said quietly.

Moyra smiled again, then leaned in and gently hugged him. Taken slightly by surprise, Kellach found his worries slowly draining from him. He allowed the faintest smile to appear and hugged her back. Then, even more surprisingly, Kellach suddenly felt Moyra's lips pressed against his neck. Taking a sharp breath, he felt a shiver run down his spine, but Moyra didn't seem to notice. It didn't last more than a moment before Moyra lay down on the bed, turning her back to him. Kellach stared in astonishment at her and shook his head to clear it. Sighing quietly, he laid down next to her, pressing his back against her. He closed his eyes and fell asleep, his dreams undisturbed by shadows.

…

When Kellach woke in the morning, he was still turned towards the room and he saw his brother staring across at him. Blinking in surprise, Kellach opened his mouth to explain, when he suddenly felt Moyra shift against him, pressing closer. Driskoll raised an eyebrow.

"Looks like you had a good night last night," he mused smugly.

"Shut up," Kellach muttered, looking away. He wanted to roll over and shove Moyra away to save himself from any more of his brother's looks, but he also didn't want to disturb her. He heard Moyra mumble something in her sleep, but he couldn't make out what she had said. Driskoll sat up in his bed and stretched.

"I'm going downstairs to get breakfast started," he announced, "When you two love birds are done snuggling, it'll be waiting for you." Then he grabbed his jacket and walked out of the room.

"We're not love bir-" But Kellach didn't get to finish his sentence as Driskoll slammed the door shut behind him. He sighed, annoyed, and rolled over to look at Moyra. She was still fast asleep and had been gently pressing her forehead against his back, but now that he had turned over she thrust her face into his neck, making him gasp. He felt her start to stir and he hoped she would move away in that moment, but she didn't. Kellach felt his heart start to race and he gently nudged his friend.

All that accomplished was getting Moyra to let out a strange little sigh, and Kellach shivered as he felt her warm breath against his skin. He felt her lips press to his neck, just next to his throat, and his heart sped up even more. She was asleep, wasn't she?

"Moyra," Kellach whispered as gently as he could.

"What?" Moyra muttered somewhat irritably into his neck.

Kellach blinked. So she was awake. He hadn't expected her to respond, so he had no idea what to say. He took a breath. "It's morning," he pointed out awkwardly.

"That's nice," she responded, not sounding at all embarrassed that she still had her face in his neck. Kellach tried not to shake.

"Um, are you planning on getting up soon?" he wondered. He didn't want to sound rude, but he had to admit he was baffled by her sudden change in attitude. Why was she doing this to him? Didn't she realize how uncomfortable he was?

"Why, are you?" Moyra countered. Kellach could swear he felt her press a little closer.

"I was planning to," he muttered. He suddenly felt her clutch the front of his shirt with both hands, and he had to stop himself from sighing. If he wanted to get up, he would basically have to rip himself from her grasp.

"Please don't go yet," Kellach heard Moyra say quietly, the edge gone from her voice to be replaced by a hint of sadness, "I just want to lie here with you for a little while longer."

"Why?" Kellach asked, genuinely confused. Moyra gave him no answer. He sighed silently. "All right," he resigned.

"Thank you," she replied, letting go of his shirt. She moved a little closer to him, and he felt her gently curve her body to match his own while her mouth pressed a bit harder against his throat. Kellach felt a strange tingle race along his entire body as Moyra gently breathed into his neck. He didn't know how long Moyra planned to lay there next to him, so he tried to stop himself from growing impatient or anxious.

After awhile Kellach was certain Moyra had fallen back asleep. Just as he was about to move away to get up, he felt her sigh, and her breath warmed his neck again. He shivered, and Moyra suddenly spoke.

"I'm sorry," she said softly. Kellach blinked in surprise.

"About what?" he wondered.

"I know I'm making you uncomfortable," she replied, "You think I can't hear your breathing? Or feel your heart beat, or your trembling? I'm not stupid, Kellach. I know how you feel about this. It's just…" She paused to think about her words. "I felt so vulnerable after the fire, but you immediately comforted me, holding me and making me feel safe. You're always making me feel better. Ever since this whole shadow beast thing started, I've felt more exposed and threatened than I ever have. But being next to you makes me feel better. Feeling you against me calms me down. I…" she paused again. "I'm sorry I keep making you uncomfortable."

Kellach felt ashamed of himself. Of course she wouldn't feel safe after the fire! It had destroyed her home and nearly destroyed her family. Plus, was it not Moyra who had already calmed his fears not once, but twice already? Why should he be so nervous around her? That first kiss had meant nothing; she had said so herself. And everything else? He felt horrible for being so uncomfortable when he should have been trying to comfort her.

"I'm the one who should be sorry," Kellach murmured, "You're my best friend, I shouldn't be nervous around you." He sighed. "I'm a lousy friend."

"No, you're not," Moyra insisted. She shifted herself so she could look directly into his eyes. "You're the best friend a girl could ask for." She leaned over and gently kissed him on the cheek. He blushed and looked away.

…

About a week passed and there weren't any instances with the shadow beast. Kellach had a small hope that it had gone away, but he didn't hope much. After that first night, Moyra insisted that Kellach share the bed with her every night, and Kellach had to admit that the nightmares seemed to have vanished. Except for one night, a week later.

Kellach had just lain down to sleep, with Moyra pressed right up against him. After admitting to himself that he was being silly, he didn't mind Moyra being so close to him anymore. And Moyra seemed content just lying next to him.

As he fell asleep, Kellach could feel Moyra's gentle hand on his shoulder. He drifted into sleep and he dreamed. He could hear the sound of a heart beating, softly at first, but it slowly grew louder and faster. Kellach opened his eyes and found himself in a dark and empty space. As the heart beat grew louder, tendrils of darkness started slithering towards him. Before he could react, the darkness wrapped itself around him, slowly smothering him. As it did, Kellach could hear the sound of a familiar laugh, and the beast of darkness pressed up behind him.

 _"How does it feel to be slowly smothered to death, Kellach?"_ the beast whispered in his ear. He could feel the creature's claws gripping his shoulders, and as Kellach tried to fight against the darkness, the beast roughly forced him to the ground. Terrified, Kellach felt the beast move on top of him and pin him to the ground. _"Isn't it so terrible to be helpless?"_ the beast taunted, _"Knowing you can do nothing to save yourself or anyone else? I'll make you feel helpless. You think you can hide from me forever? I have power over you, Kellach, and soon I will have enough power to wreck this city. I'll spill your blood and the blood of everyone you love."_ The beast leaned down and Kellach was forced to look it straight in the eye. Its cold, dead, hollow eyes.

The heart beat grew louder.

The beast licked its lips, then ran one clawed hand gently through Kellach's hair, making him shudder at its touch. Its grin grew wider and it leaned down to whisper in his ear.

 _"Am I making you uncomfortable, Kellach?"_ it hissed with pleasure, _"I would say I'm sorry, but you know I'm not."_ The beast snickered.

"Why are you doing this?" Kellach managed to ask, his voice coming out in a cracked whisper, "Why are you tormenting me?"

 _"Because I was summoned to do so,"_ the beast told him, _"It's my job. Whenever I'm summoned, I take on the tasks my summoner wants me to do. And boy, does my summoner hate you!"_ The shadow beast chuckled, then threw back its head and laughed, as if remembering a great joke. Then it leaned down to Kellach again. _"This person made it very clear that I was to torture you, use your friends against you, and kill you in the most painful and awful way. And once you are dead, Kellach…"_ The beast's voice lowered to a quiet whisper. _"You will be mine forever! You will join me and the rest of my victims in eternal damnation!"_

Kellach squeezed his eyes shut, trying to block out the beast's horrible laughter. The heart beat in his ears grew louder and louder until he couldn't take it anymore. He woke with a start, sitting up and gasping. Breathing heavily, Kellach looked around the room, which was still covered in the darkness of night. Moyra was still sound asleep next to him, unaware of his sudden panic. Through the darkness he could make out Driskoll asleep on his own bed, snoring softly with his face in his pillow. Kellach took a deep breath, trying to calm himself, then carefully got out of bed and threw on his robes. He silently walked downstairs and stealthily crossed through the living room where Royma and Breddo were asleep to the kitchen. Lighting a single candle for light, he went over to start boiling water and then sat down at the table, rubbing his temples to try to think.

The shadow beast… what had it said to him? That it had been summoned to kill him? But why? Who would want him gone? The only people Kellach could think of who could possibly be powerful enough to summon such a creature, and want to do him harm, were either dead or safely locked away. Could it possibly be an old enemy of the old order of the Knights of the Silver Dragon? But then why target him? Kellach was worried that the shadow had been ordered to go after Driskoll and Moyra as well, and he was afraid of what it might do to them. Sighing in frustration, Kellach got up and took the water off the fire and poured himself some tea before sitting down again. He mentally made a list of all of their enemies and almost immediately eliminated them as suspects, leaving absolutely no one left. There wasn't a single person he could think of who would've summoned the beast. Unless…

Kellach looked up when he heard a sound and saw Driskoll and Moyra standing in the doorway. They looked ruffled, obviously haven just woken up, and slightly annoyed that they were awake in the middle of the night. Driskoll let out a huge yawn.

"What are you doing awake at this hour?" he asked, sleepily, "Don't you know what time it is? Dad would kill us if he knew we were up."

"Then why are you two awake?" Kellach inquired, raising an eyebrow.

"Answer the question!" Driskoll snapped.

Kellach sighed. "I couldn't sleep," he replied, "I had a nightmare about the shadow beast." He heard Moyra take a sharp breath and watched as she walked over to sit beside him. Driskoll gripped the back of a chair.

"You've been having nightmares, too?" he asked, concern showing in his eyes. Kellach stared back at him.

"I didn't know you were having nightmares," Kellach said, "Why didn't you say anything?"

Driskoll shrugged. "I didn't really think it was important," he answered, "Just my mind scaring me with images of the shadow beast or something."

"So we've all been having dreams about the beast of shadows," Moyra muttered from where she sat next to Kellach. "But what does it mean?"

The three of them sat there silently, trying to think. Driskoll sat down in the seat across from his brother and put his feet up on the table while Kellach stared at the ground, thinking about his nightmare.

"There was one thing the beast said to me in my dream that I found interesting," Kellach said eventually. Moyra looked at him.

"What was that?" she asked.

"It said it was summoned by someone who hates us," he replied, "I've been trying to think of who that might be, but everyone I've thought of couldn't have possibly have been able to summon it."

"Maybe it's not one of our past enemies," Moyra suggested, "Maybe it's someone who's been posing as a friend."

The potential horror of her words made Kellach shiver.

 **Ok, I'm gonna end it there. This chapter is getting pretty long, and I'm starting to get to some of the parts that I'm really excited about writing.**

 **At least something kind of important came out of this chapter. Anyway, next time we go back to Moyra's POV, and I have a nasty idea. Look forward to that. :D**


	10. Chapter 10

**I don't have much to say for this chapter. Just that I'm getting closer to revealing something super obvious. Also, I've decided that this story takes place a bit before the final two books. Enjoy!**

 **CHAPTER 10**

Moyra woke with a start, sitting up and panting. Her sleep had been disturbed by horrific nightmares, all of them showing her the beast of shadows. She looked down to make sure Kellach was still asleep beside her and was relieved to see that he was. In all of her nightmares Kellach and Driskoll had been taken away from her, and Moyra was determined not to let that happen in real life. She laid back down and gently wrapped her arms around Kellach, pulling him in close to her. She felt him stir in her arms, but she didn't let go.

She heard him sigh. "Good morning, Moyra," Kellach said in a quiet voice.

Some-what reluctantly, Moyra carefully unwrapped her arms and allowed him to roll over to look at her. She was relieved when she saw the spark of humor in his eyes.

Allowing herself a small smile, Moyra climbed out of bed and walked over to Driskoll, who was still fast asleep. She grabbed his arm and pulled him out of bed. "Wake up, already!" she told him.

Gasping awake, Driskoll clawed at the bed. Moyra gave him a great tug and he fell to the floor. She gave him an innocent smile as he glared up at her.

"What was that for?" he growled.

Moyra shrugged. "To wake you up," she replied simply. "Now get out. I need to change."

Giving her an annoyed look, Driskoll stood up and shuffled out the door with Kellach close behind him.

…

This was the day of one of the many parties that took place in the castle, and since Moyra actually remembered this, she decided to wear the nice dress that Kellach had bought for her. She tried to ignore the astonished looks Driskoll gave her.

"Where did you get that dress?" he wondered.

Moyra hid her face a little, trying not to blush. "Kellach bought it for me," she replied, looking over at Kellach, who was pretending not to notice.

"Well, you look really good in it," Driskoll muttered.

"One of the many celebration parties is today, so I thought I'd dress up a little," Moyra explained, "What are you boys wearing?"

Kellach and Driskoll looked down at the clothes they wore now, the same ones they almost always wore, then looked back up at Moyra to indicate that this was it. She sighed and rolled her eyes at them, then led the way out the door.

The castle was packed as usual. Nearly everyone from Curston was there, and Moyra could see her parents on the dance floor, sweeping around having a wonderful time. Looking around, she could also see Torin standing near the rear of the room,surveying the area and looking out for any trouble. Moyra briefly wondered if their parents would expect the three of them to be there.

A moment later, the song that had been playing ended, and Moyra's parents went to sit down at a nearby table. Moyra led the boys over to them. Royma looked up and saw them, then smiled and waved them over.

"There you guys are!" Royma greeted, "Breddo and I have been holding this table forever! You were taking so long that we had to go out and dance."

"You couldn't possibley know we were coming," Moyra muttered, "Or have been waiting that long. It's still morning."

"Anyway," Breddo said, completely ignoring his daughter's comments, "Are you three going to get out on the dance floor later?"

"Absolutely not," Driskoll replied immediately.

"It's pretty unlikely," Kellach added.

"No," Moyra said, simply.

Breddo frowned, but before he could say anything, Royma noticed for the first time what Moyra was wearing. "Why, Moyra!" she exclaimed, "You look so lovely! Where did you get that dress?"

Moyra felt herself blush a little. "Kellach bought it for me," she answered, lightly pressing against her friend. Kellach looked at the floor as Royma smiled at him.

The party got into full swing and Moyra's parents went out to dance several more times while Moyra, Kellach, and Driskoll mostly just sat at the table, talking. Several young men came over to the table offering to dance with Moyra, but she rejected all of them. She was pretty sure they only wanted to dance with her because of the dress, and besides that, there were only two boys she would ever agree to dance with anyway and she knew they both didn't like to dance. Eventually Driskoll got up and went over to the food table and came back with a plate piled high with all sorts of different foods. Moyra and Kellach stared at him.

"Geez, Driskoll, anyone might think that we never feed you," Kellach said, a touch of humor in his voice.

"Shut up," Driskoll muttered, starting to work on his massive food pile.

Moyra sighed and rolled her eyes. She looked out at the room, watching all the people, including her parents, dancing. The song was starting to come to a close, but she knew another one was going to play right afterwards. She turned and looked at Kellach who was just sort of absent-mindedly tracing patterns on the table with his finger. She gave him a hard nudge in the ribs.

"Come dance with me," Moyra requested.

"I don't want to," Kellach replied, still tracing patterns.

Frowning, Moyra seized his arm and dragged him out onto the dance floor with her. As the song began, she pulled Kellach close to her, so close that their bodies were nearly touching. She heard Kellach take a sharp breath, but she ignored it. Then, feeling the mood of the song, she wrapped an arm around him and pressed him against her. Moyra heard him gasp.

"Er, Moyra?" Kellach murmured.

"Shush," Moyra hissed at him quietly. She suddenly pressed him much closer, spotting something past him. Drawing in a sharp breath, she leaned in to whisper in Kellach's ear.

"Kellach! I see it!" she whispered desperately, "The beast of shadows! I see it!"

Moyra felt him tense up, but she refused to let him turn around and see it. She didn't want him to go into shock right in the middle of the dance floor. But they had to do something, as she could see the shadow slowly slink down the hallway opposite of them. Letting him go, she carefully made her way across the floor over to where she had seen it disappear. She felt Kellach close behind her and felt relieved that he was there.

Making sure no one was watching, Moyra and Kellach entered the hallway, keeping an eye out for the shadow. As they walked, Moyra felt a growing dread that they were being watched. She stopped and started to turn around, but a hand suddenly closed around her mouth. Kellach made a strangled gasp as another hand closed around his throat. Although she couldn't see who had captured them, Moyra knew it was the beast. She heard its hissing laugh.

 _"Aw, did you two think you could catch me off guard?"_ the beast chuckled evilly, _"How pitiful. I was hoping that when I caught and killed you it would be more of a challenge. Oh well. Perhaps you two will be more amusing when you're dead."_

With that, the beast grabbed Moyra around the neck and lifted her and Kellach off their feet. Moyra choked, trying to pry the creature's fingers off her throat, but it was no use. Looking over, she saw that Kellach had already given up and was trembling uncontrolably. Moyra wished she could comfort him and press against his side. The creature carried them far from the main room, and Moyra feared that they really would be killed.

Suddenly, the creature stopped in front of a strange metal door. It somehow opened all on its own and Moyra and Kellach were blasted by a powerful icy wind. Chuckling, the creature tossed them inside and shut the door behind them. Moyra immediately ran over and tried pounding on the door, but it was so covered in ice that it made no sound whatsoever. Shivering, she turned around and got a look at the room. They were in a very small plain room covered in ice. A magical wind seemed to be blowing from somewhere, keeping the room frozen. Kellach was sitting against the wall, arms wrapped around himself, and was trembling uncontrolabley. Moyra walked over and sat down next to him, pressing herself right up against him.

"What are we going to do?" Moyra asked her shivering friend, "Can you conjure a flame or something?"

Kellach slowly shook his head. "Any fire I could conjure up would immediately be blown out," he replied, "It's hopeless."

Moyra had never seen him look so despairing. She couldn't tell if he was shivering more from his encounter with the shadow beast or the cold. She moved closer, trying to keep herself and Kellach warm. But already she could feel the warmth draining away.

As Moyra tried to think of someway to escape, she suddenly felt Kellach poke her in the side. Annoyed, she turned to look at him and saw that his eyes were closed and he seemed to be whispering to himself. She blinked at him, trying to figure out what he was saying, but the howling wind was too loud.

"What are you doing?" she wondered.

"Right before he cancled my classes to research the beast, Zendric started teaching me a new spell," Kellach explained, keeping his eyes closed, "It's supposed to warm keep someone warm even in the coldest of temperatures. But I haven't mastered it yet, so I don't know if it will work right."

Moyra nodded and kept quiet while Kellach muttered his spell. She suddenly felt her body temperature rising from deep within her. It had worked! "Kellach you did it!" she exclaimed happily, "Now you can do it on yourself, right?"

Kellach opened his eyes, but didn't look at her. "I can't," he replied quietly.

"What do you mean you can't?" Moyra asked, "Your spell worked on me! Why can't you use it on yourself?"

"Because I haven't truly mastered it yet," Kellach explained, "Zendric told me that until I've mastered the spell, I can only keep one person warm at a time. If I try using on someone else, myself for instance, I would have to drain it all from you."

Moyra stared at him as he closed his eyes again and wrapped his arms tighter around himself. She moved closer to him, making sure their bodies were touching so hopefully she could help him stay warm as well.

"Kellach, I can't watch you suffer like this," she murmured to him, "Use the spell on yourself. You're the wizard, you should be the one to stay strong."

"I can't do that, Moyra," Kellach muttered in reply, "I'm not going to let you freeze to death just so I can save myself."

Seeing as his mind was made up, Moyra decided to try something else. She gently took his hands in her own and shivered slightly at how cold they already were. But the spell warmed their hands instantly and Moyra could see Kellach's shivering going down. She gently pulled him closer and wrapped her arms around him.

"Please don't think anything of this, Kellach," Moyra said quietly to him.

Kellach blinked in confusion at her. "Why would I-?" He was cut off when Moyra leaned over and pressed her lips to his. She willed as much warmth as she had into him, hoping it would be enough to keep him from freezing. Kellach's eyes widened but Moyra was not willing to let go yet. She fought to keep her excitement down and stop herself from pressing any harder. She felt Kellach's body warming which made Moyra relieved, but she waited a few more moments before pulling back.

"Better?" she asked.

Kellach nodded, blushing. "Thanks," he muttered.

They huddled together, hoping that maybe someone would find them soon. Moyra thought of Driskoll and wondered where he was right now. She pressed against Kellach, hoping that the beast hadn't found him as well.

Suddenly, Moyra thought she heard someone calling their names. She strained to hear over the wind, and then she heard Driskoll's voice calling for them.

"Kellach, do you hear that?" she asked excitedly, "It sounds like Driskoll!"

Not giving Kellach time to reply, Moyra ran over to the door. Kellach slowly got up and followed her. She pounded on the door, despite it making no sound.

"Driskoll!" she shouted, "We're in here! Please help us!"

She held her breath as she tried to listen. Suddenly there was the sound of rattling, and with a loud grating sound, the door swung open. Moyra and Kellach quickly rushed out into the corridor and barrled into Driskoll.

"Where were you guys?" he asked as Moyra wrapped her arms around him.

"We were stuck in this freezer!" Moyra scowled, pushing him away, "Where were _you?_ " She folded her arms.

"Don't be so hard on him, Moyra," Kellach said quietly, "He did let us out. And it's not like people would know where this room is."

"I guess," Moyra sighed, relaxing her anger, "Thanks for freeing us, Driskoll."

"No problem," Driskoll replied, "How did you get stuck in there in the first place?"

"How else?" Kellach answered, "The beast of shadows caught us."

They started walking down the hall back towards the party. "You saw the beast?" Driskoll asked.

"Yeah," Moyra clarified, a little embarrassed, "It caught us off guard."

"We probably would have froze to death if you hadn't found us," Kellach told him, "Where were you, anyway?"

"It took a while to find that room," Driskoll said quickly, "It's not like that door was marked or anything."

Moyra wanted to ask him more, but at that moment they arrived back at the main room. The three of them quickly went back to their table, hoping that Royma and Breddo hadn't noticed they had been gone. Thankfully, the two were still out on the dance floor, and hadn't noticed anything.

No sooner had they sat down, when suddenly Alexandra made her way over. Kellach quietly greeted her while Moyra frowned.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

"This is a party," Alexandra replied, snidely, "I am allowed to be here. Anyway, I was hoping to ask Kellach for a dance."

"I don't want to," Kellach muttered.

Apparently unable to take "no" for an answer, Alexandra grabbed Kellach's arm and dragged him out on to the dance floor. Moyra watched with anger, not even realizing she was madly bending a fork out shape. Driskoll stared at her in surprise.

"Uh, Moyra?" he said hesitantly, "Are you okay?"

Moyra sighed and dropped the fork. She was becoming more obvious. If she didn't tell someone soon she might ruin everything.

"Driskoll," she sighed, "I think... I think I need to tell you something."

 **There we go. Next chapter will be with Driskoll and we'll learn Moyra's, ahem, "secret." Sorry if this chapter took a while to get up. Also, sorry if there's more spelling mistakes than usual. I'm typing this on my laptap which has an inferior document program that doesn't have spell check. Oh well. Read and review, please!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Good news! I got a better document thingy so hopefully typing will be a bit easier.**

 **Anyway, Moyra is going to tell Driskoll her secret today, and if you've been paying attention at all, it won't be all that surprising.**

 **CHAPTER 11**

Driskoll had told Kellach and Moyra that he had trouble finding the room, but that wasn't entirely true. In reality, it simply took him a while to even realize they were gone.

Anyway, when Moyra told him she wanted to tell him something, Driskoll's heart lifted. For a while now, Driskoll had been harboring secret feelings of his own. He bottled them up and hid them, fearing what Moyra and Kellach would think. But perhaps now was the perfect time? Maybe now he could tell Moyra how he _really_ felt about her. How he had always felt about her…

Moyra lead him a little away from the table to give them a little privacy. When she was sure they were alone, she sighed. "This is going to be kind of hard to say," she said.

"That's all right," Driskoll assured her, "I have something I want to tell you as well. But, uh, you can go first. Take all the time you need."

"Thanks," Moyra replied. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, collecting her thoughts. She opened her mouth to speak several times, but closed it again. As Driskoll waited patiently for her, she finally opened her eyes, settling on what to say.

"I've been hiding something for a while now," Moyra started, "I know we're all friends, but I've been keeping this from you and Kellach for several years now, and I just don't want to hide it anymore."

"It's all right," Driskoll said, "We all have secrets. We don't have to share all of them."

"No, I have to tell you this," Moyra insisted, "This has been eating me up, and I'm afraid the beast of shadows will use it against me." She paused to look at him. "Please don't hold it against me."

"Why would I ever do that?" Driskoll asked quietly. He felt his heart swelling, the anticipation killing him.

Moyra blinked gratefully at him. "All right," she sighed. She paused again to take a breath. "Driskoll," she said at last, "I've fallen deeply in love with Kellach."

Driskoll felt his heart shatter to pieces as his eyes widened. _Aw, damn it! I should've gone first!_ "Y-you're in love with my brother?" he clarified. Moyra slowly nodded. "W-when did this happen?"

"I realized it about five years ago," Moyra replied, "I've been hiding it all this time, but it's gotten so hard recently that I had to tell someone. And please promise you won't tell Kellach. I'd rather tell him myself, when the time is right."

"Of course," Driskoll promised, "I won't tell." He paused a moment. "So, the whole time we've been Knights of the Silver Dragon, you've been harboring feelings for him?"

Moyra turned away, but Driskoll still saw her blush. "It's not just that I have those feelings," she said quietly, "Every day, and every adventure, I feel my love for him grow stronger. I don't know if you've ever been in love, Driskoll, but I love Kellach so much it hurts."

Driskoll sighed heavily as Moyra stared down at the ground. Of course he's been in love. He wanted to tell her that as a matter of fact he was in love right now. But as Moyra looked up again, he realized that he couldn't tell her the truth; not anymore. He didn't want to complicate things more than they had to be. So instead he simply nodded.

"I understand," he told her, forcing a smile, "And don't worry, I won't tell Kellach."

Moyra smiled. "Thanks, Driskoll," she said, "Now, what was it that you wanted to say?"

Driskoll suddenly felt himself grow very pale. What was he supposed to say now? He gave an awkward cough. "Oh, it was nothing," he lied, "Not important."

Moyra frowned at him. "You're a lousy liar," she told him, "What's on your mind?"

Thinking fast, Driskoll remembered something and decided to try that. "Well, don't get mad, but Kellach told me that you had asked to share your first kiss with him."

Moyra looked very annoyed that Kellach had broken his promise, but she said nothing and allowed Driskoll to continue. He cleared his throat.

"This may sound silly, but I always imagined that you would share your first kiss with me," Driskoll felt himself blushing as he talked, "Because we would both understand that it didn't really mean anything. You know, just to get it over with?"

He felt stupid saying this to her, but it was true. Driskoll _had_ always thought that his and Moyra's similar outlook on things like love would lead them to kiss, mostly as a joke. But he never actually _thought_ about telling Moyra any of this. He looked over at her and was surprised to see Moyra grinning and shaking her head.

"Wow, Driskoll," she laughed, "You made that sound a lot more awkward than it needed to be." Driskoll stared at her.

"What?"

Moyra leaned over and gently kissed Driskoll on his mouth. Driskoll had to stop himself from excitedly kissing her back, and he felt his heart melting. Her lips were so soft, and she smelled so nice. He wouldn't have minded if it had gone on forever, but it was over all too soon, and Moyra was pulling back.

Driskoll again felt himself blush. "Thanks," he mumbled.

Moyra nudged him playfully. "Don't mention it," she said.

…

As Driskoll drifted off to sleep that night, he couldn't help but look over at his brother's bed where Kellach and Moyra were already asleep. He felt a pang of jealousy seeing Moyra pressed right up against his brother, especially knowing her true feelings for him. He sighed and rolled over, turning his back on them.

Darkness filled his dreams, and Driskoll felt empty and alone. He looked around, trying to see anything in the black mist of darkness, but he couldn't spot anything. Suddenly, he heard something coming up behind him and he turned around.

"Kellach? Moyra?" he called out nervously.

Before Driskoll could move, something suddenly grabbed him from behind, wrapping one arm around his chest, and another around his mouth, gagging him. Driskoll struggled to free himself, but it was no use. A familiar hissing laugh sounded in his ear.

 _"Dear Driskoll, you know it's no use to fight against me,"_ the beast of shadows sneered, _"Heh. You know, I've been spending a lot of time with your brother. And it looks like I'm not the only one."_

The beast laughed evilly and Driskoll growled something in response. He knew what it was doing. It was trying to get him mad. But he was determined not to.

 _"Oh, cheer up, Driskoll,"_ the beast snickered, _"You know I love you the most. My relationship with your brother is just casual!"_

Driskoll growled again. How dare this creature talk about Kellach that way! Was it trying to make him hate his brother? That would never happen!

 _"Besides,"_ the beast continued, _"Your little friend, Moyra has Kellach wrapped around her little finger. But you wouldn't care about that, would you Driskoll?"_ The beast sneered with laughter, and Driskoll wished at that moment that he had his sword on him.

 _"Oh yes, I know all about your little crush on your friend,"_ the beast hissed, _"I know everything that goes on with you! Getting kind of jealous of your brother, aren't you?"_ The beast laughed and Driskoll shivered. Suddenly, the beast leaned down over him. _"But don't you worry about that, dear Driskoll._ I'll _keep you company."_

Before Driskoll could react at all, the beast settled itself over him and covered Driskoll's mouth with its own. Driskoll felt his heart racing and shuddered as the beast covered him. He tried to fight the beast off, but it was just too strong for him. He felt its claws digging into his shoulders and its foul breath filled his lungs. He gagged as the beast breathed into him and his throat started to burn. Then the beast released him and stood up, towering over Driskoll.

 _"That ought to do it,"_ the beast sneered, _"I'll be watching you, Driskoll. You and your friends are doomed."_ The beast laughed cruelly and Driskoll awoke, shaking.

Breathing hard, he looked over at Kellach's bed and felt a mixture of relief and envy when he saw that Kellach and Moyra were both sound asleep. It looked like they hadn't been bothered by the beast of shadows at all. He sighed and laid back down, but he didn't sleep again until the very early hours of morning.

…

When Driskoll woke in the morning, he had gotten very little sleep. On top of that, he had a headache and his throat was very sore. He felt very sick. Had this been the beast's plan? To make him sick? What would that accomplish?

Coughing, he looked over at his brother's bed and saw that Kellach had already gotten out of bed and went downstairs while Moyra was still fast asleep. He tried to struggle to get out of bed, but fell back down. Panting, he pulled his blanket up closer to himself. He suddenly heard someone coming up the stairs, and a moment later Kellach entered. He glanced over at his younger brother and stopped.

"Driskoll?" Kellach said, "Are you ok? You look horrible!"

"I feel horrible," Driskoll mumbled, "I think I caught a cold or something."

Kellach walked over to his brother's bed and sat down beside him. He gently pressed the back of his hand to Driskoll's forehead to feel his temperature, and in that moment Driskoll found himself greatly disliking him for some reason. Kellach drew his hand back.

"You're very warm," he told him. Driskoll wanted to make a snarky comment, but he restrained himself. "Do you want me to get anything for you? I don't think you should be going anywhere today."

 _Obviously!_ Driskoll thought bitterly. "I'm fine," he said out loud, "I just need rest."

"If you say so," Kellach replied quietly. He went over to his own bed and woke Moyra. As they left the room, Driskoll curled himself up, trying to stop himself from shivering. He felt a bitterness enter his heart that he couldn't quite explain. And he didn't try to stop it.

 **Sorry this chapter took so long to write. I've been busy with other stuff, and I only had an idea for the first part of the chapter. I didn't know what to do with the rest.**

 **Anyway, next chapter we're switching to Kellach. Also, I have to think of what the chapter is going to be about. I'll have to do that when I'm not distracted by elections and other stuff and the TV isn't constantly going. Leave a review, please!**


	12. Chapter 12

**I have a basic idea for this chapter, so let's see what I can do with it. Also, how much more interesting will this chapter be knowing that Moyra is in love with Kellach, and he has no clue? If you read all the books with that in mind, it makes them slightly more interesting.**

 **CHAPTER 12**

Kellach was greatly worried about his brother. He had seemed fine the day before, how did he get sick so suddenly? He had a feeling Driskoll hadn't told him everything, but he didn't want to press the issue.

He was also starting to grow worried about the beast of shadows. They hadn't made any progress on who had summoned the beast, or what their plans were. Zendric as well had not contacted him recently. He wanted to get back to his lessons, but he didn't know whether he should ask or not. He sighed to himself as he went downstairs.

When Kellach entered the kitchen, he was quite surprised to see Alexandra sitting at the table, feet up, and sipping something from a mug. He heard Moyra, who had come down the stairs with him, hiss silently at the sight of the girl. Kellach sighed and walked over to Alexandra, ignoring Moyra who turned her back to them.

"Alexandra, you've got stop breaking into our house," he told her in a quiet voice.

"I wouldn't have to break in if you would just leave the door unlocked," she pointed out smugly. She took another sip from the mug.

Kellach sighed and sat down next to her, gently pushing her feet off the table. Before he could speak, he heard Moyra go out to the other room.

"What are you drinking?" he wondered.

"Oh, just a potion I whipped up at home," Alexandra replied.

"Potion?"

"Yes," she answered, "My parents are potion makers. They spend all their time making their precious potions, that they barely pay attention to Serilynne and me." She sighed and put the mug down. "So, when they're not looking, I usually make my own potions and test them by drinking them myself."

"Isn't that a little dangerous?" Kellach questioned, "What if you made something lethal?"

Alexandra shrugged. "Maybe," she said, "But what's life without a little excitement? Don't you agree, Kellach?" She offered the mug to him. "Want some?"

"No, thank you," he murmured.

"I've actually made a few potions that my parents haven't discovered yet," she continued, taking another gulp, "And I don't plan to tell them about it. Let them figure it out on their own."

"Like what?" Kellach asked.

"Well, I made one that numbs the arms and legs so that they're so weak you can't even move," she explained. She chuckled at the memory. "Boy, what a heck of a time it was testing _that_ one out!"

"What does that one do?" Kellach wondered.

Shrugging, Alexandra took another big gulp. "I have no idea," she replied.

Kellach looked at her, concerned. "Are you okay?" he asked.

"So far," she said, "I don't _think_ the ingredients I used are toxic. But then again, one poison my parents make is made from two totally normal plants, so who can say?"

She tipped back the mug, finishing it off, then put the mug down on the table. Kellach stared at her in amazement.

"How do you feel?" he asked her.

"Fine," she answered, "It just tasted of strawberries and apples. Even if it didn't do anything, at least I made a tasty drink!"

"I don't think I could drink anything if I didn't know what it was first," Kellach told her earnestly, "You're either brave or mad."

Alexandra chuckled. "Why thank you, Kellach," she said, "That's so nice of you to say!" She gently nudged him. "So, what are you planning on doing today?"

Kellach sighed heavily. "I don't know," he responded, "Driskoll's not feeling well, and we haven't made any more progress on the beast of shadows. I was thinking of going to ask Zendric to resume my studies. It's been almost a week and a half."

"Are you sure you can handle all of that?" Alexandra wondered, "Chasing down that beast and taking your lessons? And… if you don't object to it, I would still want you to teach me." She blushed slightly.

"I've dealt with much more in the past," Kellach said, "I think I can handle it."

Alexandra snickered. "If you say so," she teased. "Anyway, can I go with you to see Zendric? I would like to show him how well I'm coming along."

"Are you sure?" Kellach asked her, "You don't want to practice a little more?"

"We can practice now," she pointed out. She gently took his hands and pulled him to his feet. Then she pulled him closer, so that they were almost touching.

Kellach quietly shuddered. "Er, okay," he muttered.

For the next half hour or so, Kellach worked with Alexandra, showing her how to conjure a flame. When she couldn't get the hand gestures right, Kellach gently guided her with his own hands. Alexandra gasped in surprise when a tiny flame appeared before her.

"Look! I did it!" she exclaimed.

"Good job," Kellach said, smiling warmly.

The girl sneered. "Zendric said I would never be able to do it," she said bitterly, "Well, I sure showed him!"

Kellach didn't say anything. While he knew that Zendric wasn't always the friendliest wizard, he knew this better than anyone, he also couldn't see him being as cruel as Alexandra claimed he was being. But he didn't want to say anything to upset her.

At that moment, Moyra came into the room, and Kellach could tell she was trying hard not to glare at Alexandra. Kellach didn't really understand why Moyra didn't like her, but he was also too afraid to ask. Moyra walked over and sat down next to Kellach, folding her arms, and gently leaning against him.

"I think we should head to the library today," she murmured to him, "There might be something about the beast there."

It had strangely never occurred to Kellach that they might be able to find something about the beast of shadows in the library. He had been so distracted by everything else that was happening, the thought never crossed his mind. He looked at Moyra, who was staring at him with her green eyes.

"That's a good idea," he replied, "I don't know why I hadn't thought of that before. Um…" he paused and looked over at Alexandra, then back at Moyra. "Do you mind if Alexandra comes with us?"

The look on Moyra's face told Kellach that she definitely did mind, but she didn't say so. Instead, she simply sighed. "All right, Kellach," she muttered quietly, "Only for you."

Kellach briefly wondered what she meant by that, but he decided to ignore it. After quickly checking on Driskoll again, the three of them went out into the town. As they walked towards the Wizard's quarters, Kellach explained to Moyra their plan for the day. He noticed that both girls stuck very close to him while they walked, and he wondered why.

They reached Zendric's tower and he was quite surprised to see the three of them at his front door. He looked down at Kellach.

"I was not expecting you today, Kellach," he said, "What are you doing here? And why is your brother not with you?" He noticed who was next to the young wizard. "Alexandra, I was not expecting you until tomorrow."

"We know all of this, Zendric," Kellach sighed, "I wanted to ask something of you. I was actually hoping I could resume my lessons again. It has been a while…"

Zendric took breath. "Very well," he said, "If you think you can handle it." Then he turned to Alexandra. "And what do you want, girl?"

Alexandra at first had looked confident, but as soon as Zendric turned his stare on her, she shrank back against Kellach. "I was, er, hoping you could asses my skills soon," she told him, "Kellach says I'm getting a lot better."

Zendric continued to stare down at them. Then he grunted. "Fine them," he replied, "I will assess your skills tomorrow. Now, I must return to my research, if you please." He gave them a curt nod before shutting the door in their faces.

Kellach was a little taken aback by Zendric's behavior. Why did he seem so gruff? Was something bothering him? He seemed more irritated today than usual.

Shaking his head, Kellach walked away from the door with Moyra and Alexandra following him. They headed towards the library, with Kellach keeping a sharp eye out for anything suspicious. He saw the Strangely Dressed Man a little bit away telling another story to a large group of people. He was glad he had such a large group. That meant he paid no attention to the three of them as they snuck past him to the library.

Kellach immediately broke away from the girls to look for the right section for monsters. He scanned the rows of books looking for anything that might be helpful. Nothing seemed to jump out at him and he wondered if Moyra was having any better luck. He briefly thought about asking the librarian for help, but he remembered the last time they tried that and decided against it.

Just when he was about to give up, Kellach suddenly spotted a book that looked like it might be helpful. It was titled _Index of Summoning Beasts and Monsters_. Surely this had to have something useful in it! He pulled it off the shelf and flipped through it until he found a section about the Beast of Shadows.

There was a brief description of the beast, followed by the name of a different book where one could find more information. Kellach sighed with frustration. Why couldn't things ever be simple for once? He searched the shelves, but couldn't find the book anywhere.

 _Looks like I'm going to have to ask the librarian,_ he thought bitterly.

"Can I help you?" asked the elderly librarian when Kellach approached him.

"Yes, I was trying to find this book, but I can't seem to locate it," Kellach told him, "It's called _Summoning Beasts and Monsters_. My teacher, Zendric needs it."

He couldn't quite tell if the librarian believed him or not, but at least he didn't ask any questions. He shuffled over to his desk and took out his record book. He frowned as he flipped through it.

"That's odd," he muttered, "That book was checked out about a month ago, but it was never returned. Someone else must have rented it out to someone, because I cannot read this handwriting."

Kellach let a frustrated sigh. Nothing could ever be simple.

…

"So, you didn't find anything useful either?" Kellach asked Moyra as they headed home. Alexandra had left them.

Moyra shook her head. "Not a thing," she replied, "It was as if all the books that could've been useful just disappeared."

"I had the same problem," Kellach told her, "There was one book that sounded useful, but someone had rented it and never returned it."

"So, what do we do now?" Moyra wondered. Kellach sighed heavily.

"I don't know," he admitted. He always hated not having a plan. It made him feel vulnerable and weak. He jumped a little when he felt Moyra put a hand on his shoulder.

"Maybe we should check out the castle again," she suggested, "We did discover that basement, but we didn't really explore it that well."

Kellach didn't like the idea of going back to that castle, especially when it was just the two of them. But he had to admit he had no other better ideas, so he reluctantly agreed. Moyra linked her arm with his and she led the way to the castle.

The castle was a lot more quiet than they were used to. It was starting to get late and there were not a lot of people there. It rather unnerved Kellach, but Moyra seemed unphased. They snuck away to look for the basement.

"Do you remember where it was?" Kellach wondered.

"Not exactly," Moyra admitted, "I know Driskoll said he found a secret trapdoor in one of the hallways." She looked at him. "Maybe we should split up a little? We might find it better."

Kellach felt a chill run up his spine, but he decided to ignore it. "Sure," he said, "I'll stick around here, why don't you try to find the stairs we discovered?"

Moyra nodded and quickly trotted off down the hall. Kellach watched her go before starting to examine the hallway he was in. He walked over to a side table and looked at it. Something about the vase seemed off. He tried to pick it up, but it wouldn't move. Instead, he heard a click, and the floor moved behind him. Smirking, Kellach walked over to the trap door and carefully dropped down.

As soon as he did, something suddenly tackled him to the floor. Gasping, Kellach tried to get up, but whatever it was forced him back to the ground. A spindly hand covered his mouth, and a thick shadowy arm wrapped around his chest. He felt a whip like tail bind his legs, and leg wrapped around his waist so that he couldn't move at all.

 _"Ha ha ha ha! I was wondering when I would get you alone,"_ the familiar hissing voice of the Beast laughed in his ear, _"You've alluded me for far too long, Kellach. Tonight, I will reach my full power! And then no one will be able to stop me! And your little friend will help me."_

Kellach tried to struggle, but the beast was too strong for him. He felt its foul breath on his neck and he shivered. There was nothing he could do but lay there and wait for the beast to finish him off.

 **Sorry this chapter took so incredibly long to get up. I've been in a writing slump, and I have a lot of stories I'm working on. Thankfully, I have most of the next chapter already written out. So the next chapter should be up a lot sooner. Hopefully someone is still reading this. If you are, please leave a review! Thanks!**


	13. Chapter 13

**I already had most of this chapter typed up, so I just have to finish it. Sometimes when I have an idea that comes later in a story, I write that scene first so I don't forget it. I've done it with the climax of this story.**

 **Anyway, let's see what Moyra's up to.**

 **CHAPTER 13**

Moyra carefully crept through the hall, looking for the stairs that led to the basement. She knew they were around here somewhere. She distinctly remembered this hallway and exploring it with Kellach and Alexandra. She noticed a side door that seemed like someone had tried to make it blend in. As if hiding it. Moyra smiled to herself and opened it. Sure enough, there was a set of stairs leading down to the basement just beyond. She carefully entered, making sure there was no one around, and descended the stairs.

There was no sound except the sound of her footsteps as Moyra walked. It started getting darker the further she went, despite the ever-burning torches lining the walls. She wondered if Kellach had managed to find the other entrance yet.

When she finally reached the basement, Moyra took a cautious look around before entering. She slowly crossed the room, weary of any traps, or if the beast was around. But when she entered the next room, she knew why she hadn't seen it yet.

Moyra stared in horror as she saw the beast of shadows wrapped around Kellach. Her friend was trying to struggle out of the creature's grasp, but it was no use. When the beast saw her, it hissed with pleasure.

 _"Ah! There you are, Moyra! I was wondering when you would join us,"_ the beast's tone was pleasant, but Moyra could hear the mocking undertone, _"Kellach here was just dying of boredom! I had to restrain him, as he was getting too feisty!"_

The beast let out a horrible laugh that caused Moyra to cringe. She heard a sound of deep hatred come from Kellach's throat, and she was sure he would be cursing the beast if it didn't have its hand over his mouth.

Moyra took a step forward. "Let him go!" she warned it.

The beast hissed at her. _"Don't take another step!"_ it commanded, _"If you move an inch, I'll break his neck!"_ Kellach flinched, and Moyra was forced to take a step back. She glared at the monster, never taking her eyes off it.

 _"That's better,"_ the beast cooed, _"Now, Moyra, you really want to free your friend? Then you have to do something for me. You understand."_

Moyra didn't say anything, but continued to glare. The beast snickered.

 _"Don't worry, my dear, it's nothing bad,"_ the beast promised, _"It's not even anything dangerous. All I want you to do is tell young Kellach here how you_ really _feel about him."_

Moyra's breath caught in her throat, and she saw Kellach's eyes widen. The beast continued to sneer.

 _"Oh yes, I know all about that,"_ it hissed, _"It would be so easy for me to tell him myself. But where would the fun in that be? I would just be robbing you of the pleasure of telling him yourself."_

As Moyra felt her body freeze up, she looked down at Kellach. He was staring at her with wide eyes, but instead of pleading to free him, he was shaking his head at her. Did he not want to be free? But then Moyra understood. If she revealed her secret, her true feelings, it would give the beast even more power.

"I won't do it," Moyra hissed at the beast, "I won't give you more power!"

The beast narrowed its eyes at her. _"So, that's how it's going to be?"_ it said, _"Fine then. You can watch silently as I end his life!"_

"No!" Moyra cried out, starting to take a step forward.

The beast hissed, warning her to stay back. Moyra stopped, but kept her eyes on Kellach. The beast chuckled with laughter.

 _"In what way would you like to see your friend die?"_ it asked, _"I could snap his neck. Or I could slit his throat. Or I could even rip his heart out."_ With each suggestion, Moyra cringed, a horrible image of the beast killing Kellach filling her head.

"Please, don't hurt him," Moyra begged, ignoring Kellach who was still gently shaking his head at her.

 _"You know what you have to do, my dear,"_ the beast replied, a wide ugly grin spreading on its face.

Moyra took a deep breath. She knew she had to tell him, and she didn't like it. She had wanted to tell him on her own terms, but now she had no choice. _I'm sorry, Kellach,_ she thought, _But I can't just stand here and watch you die._

"Kellach," she began, "I l- "

She was cut off when the beast suddenly roared in pain. Moyra looked up in surprise and saw Driskoll standing behind the creature, his sword stuck in its back. The beast instantly released Kellach and fell away from him, while the young wizard quickly darted out of the way. The creature pulled away from Driskoll, the sword coming out of its back, and it quickly raced away before any of them could react.

Moyra looked over in amazement at Driskoll, wondering what he was doing here, and how he was even standing. He looked dead on his feet, as whatever sickness he had drained him of his energy. Kellach stood up and quickly went over to support his brother.

"Driskoll, what are you doing here?" he asked, "Not that I'm not thankful that you saved us, but how did you even know we were here? You're supposed to be asleep!"

"The beast came to taunt me in my sleep," Driskoll explained, as he leaned heavily on Kellach's shoulder, "It was saying it was going to kill both of you, and that there was nothing I could do about it because I was so ill. It even told me where you were, it was so overconfident." He paused to let out a small coughing fit. "So, I decided to prove it wrong."

Moyra came over and picked up his sword and handed it back to him. "That was very heroic of you, Driskoll," she praised, "But you should really get back to sleep. You look like you're going to collapse any second!"

"I feel like I'm going to," he admitted.

Together Moyra and Kellach helped Driskoll back to the house, as the sun slowly set on the town, turning the sky dark. When they got back, Moyra could hear her parents chatting in the kitchen and she overheard them say something about staying with a friend tonight.

Once Driskoll was curled up and warm in his bed, Moyra and Kellach got into the opposite bed. Kellach laid down next to Moyra, his back turned to her, and on the edge of the bed. Moyra lay staring at the wall, but she found that she could not fall asleep. She gently pressed against Kellach, and as the minutes went by, the moon started to rise, but she still could not sleep.

She found her mind drifting back to the confrontation with the beast, and how close she had come to telling him. She hated how the beast had almost used her feelings to not only gain power, but possibly kill Kellach right in front of her. She was glad that Driskoll had found them right at that moment and interrupted her. Maybe fate had brought him there at the most important moment?

As Moyra pondered these things, she suddenly heard a loud thud, and Kellach was no longer behind her. Blinking in surprise, Moyra rolled over and looked down at the floor where Kellach had fallen off the bed. Cringing, he glanced up at her.

"Geez, Moyra, if you wanted more space on the bed, you could've just asked," Kellach joked.

Normally Moyra would have come up with a snide comment of her own, but she stared down at Kellach with worry in her eyes. "Are you all right?" she wondered, not a speck of humor in her voice.

Kellach looked taken aback. "I'm fine," he replied, "My bed isn't that high off the floor."

Moyra sighed with relief. "Good," she said quietly. As Kellach started to get up, Moyra realized she couldn't keep this a secret any longer. If she tried, the beast might try to hurt her, or Kellach, even worse. She took a deep breath.

"Kellach, I need to tell you something important," she began, "And it can't wait until morning."

Staring in surprise, Kellach nodded slowly. "Um, all right," he said, "We can talk downstairs so we don't disturb Driskoll." Moyra silently agreed as Kellach quickly threw on his robes and led the way downstairs. She was glad her parents had decided to spend the night at a friend's house so they would be undisturbed.

When they got downstairs, Moyra sat down in the middle of the couch and watched as Kellach sat down next to her. She didn't say anything, but stared in silent anticipation as Kellach settled himself into the corner of the couch. She leaned forward a tiny bit, waiting for the perfect moment while Kellach made himself comfortable. He gently wrapped his arms around himself, then looked at Moyra. The moment Kellach opened his mouth to speak, Moyra quickly leaned forward and kissed him deeply.

Kellach's eyes widened as Moyra leaned over him, gently sliding her tongue into his mouth. This time she knew exactly what she was doing. She pressed closer, wanting to feel every inch of his body against her own. Unlike their first kiss, she wasn't going to hold back. Moyra wanted Kellach to know exactly how she felt about him.

She settled over him, pressing him against the couch. Moyra felt her heart speeding up, and she smiled slightly. In all their years of knowing each other, Moyra never could've imagined this. But here she was, kissing her best friend, and it felt wonderful! Her heart leapt with joy, and she carefully and gently explored Kellach's mouth with her tongue. She felt him tense up beneath her, but at the moment she couldn't care less. His breath, coming in heavy, short bursts, flowed into her and Moyra drank it in eagerly. She let her excitement pour through, and she moaned happily as she kissed her friend over and over, her heart full to bursting. Kellach was hers now, and they were alone, she didn't need or want anyone else now.

Moyra could've stopped, she should've stopped, but she didn't want to. She wasn't going to let Kellach stop her from kissing him until _she_ was done. She wanted to explore his neck a little, but she was afraid if she did he would start talking. So Moyra continued to kiss Kellach's mouth while she slowly inched her hands up to his neck. She grew more and more excited and pressed even harder against Kellach, as hard as she possibly could. She kissed him deeper and deeper, wanting to taste him, and feel him against every curve of her own body. Even though she knew she would have to stop kissing him eventually to explain herself, Moyra decided that she would kiss her best friend all night if she felt like it.

Suddenly Moyra felt Kellach gently start to tremble beneath her, and she grew a little irritated. She didn't know what was making him shiver, but if it was the shadow beast it would just have to wait. She moved her mouth a little so she could taste Kellach's breath, and she quietly moaned with pleasure. Moyra felt so free, finally kissing her best friend after longing for him for five long years. She silently wished that she had done this sooner. All her doubts and worries, especially those coming from those stupid stories, were washed away. She gently placed her hands on his shoulders and worked her way down to kissing his neck. As Moyra gently kissed his throat, she heard Kellach let out a shuddering breath and then felt him tense up again. Smiling slightly, Moyra decided to explore him a little, using her lips to kiss along his neck and then to just under the base of his jaw. Kellach shuddered, but she ignored it.

Eventually Moyra made her way up to his mouth again and gave him one, long, deep kiss. Finally, she pulled back and looked at him. She was quite startled when she the last thing she expected to see in Kellach's eyes: fear. A great and unexplained fear directed at her. They stared at each other for a long moment.

"Moyra," Kellach began, "Why did you...?"

"I know, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense," Moyra replied slowly, "We've been friends our entire lives, why would I kiss you like that? But the truth is, Kellach, I haven't been entirely honest with you." She paused to take a breath. "My motivations behind all of my actions have been lies. I don't really need a lot of comfort or anything. I just need to be near you. Kellach, I just want to be with you."

Taking a deep breath and steeling her courage, Moyra leaned forward to whisper in Kellach's ear. She felt him tense up a little, but that didn't matter anymore. She had to do this. She spoke in a very quiet whisper.

"I love you, Kellach," she whispered very delicately. Kellach took a sharp breath and Moyra sighed slightly. "I love you so much, it hurts. All I want is to be by your side, and to feel you beside me. You're always so good to me, always looking out for me. You make me so happy." She pressed gently against her friend. She felt him shiver, but Moyra could tell he was starting to recover from his initial shock.

"How long have you been in love with me?" Kellach asked quietly.

"I think..." Moyra paused to swallow as her throat had gone dry, "I think I've always been in love with you. But I didn't realize it until about five years ago."

"Five years ago?" Kellach repeated, "Around the sundering of the seal? You've loved me for that long?"

Moyra nodded. "So, all this time, and through all of our adventures you've been..." Kellach said.

"Deeply in love with you," Moyra finished for him. "But Kellach, listen to me. I don't want you to think any differently of me, that's why I never told you. I still want you to be my friend, I don't want that to change."

There was a pause as Kellach stared at the floor. "When did you realize this?" he asked softly.

"Do you remember that time about a month after the sundering?" Moyra wondered, "When I led you into Broken Town because I wanted to show you something?"

Kellach nodded. "Of course," he replied, "I'll never forget that day."

 _Eight-year-old Moyra raced through the main square gripping the hand of nine-year-old Kellach. She had wanted to bring Driskoll as well, but he was bed ridden with the flu. Curston was still recovering after the sundering and it was dangerous to be out right before curfew, but Moyra wanted to show her friend a place she had found and had never seen before. Kellach had been acting a lot more depressed since the sundering and his mother's disappearance, and even though he tried not to show his emotions, Moyra could tell he was hurt. She was hoping she could cheer him up a little._

 _"Come on, Kellach!" Moyra exclaimed, letting go of his hand as she ran faster, "We're almost there!"_

 _"Moyra! Slow down!" Kellach called as he fell further behind, "You know I can't run as fast as you!"_

 _But Moyra kept running faster, racing into Broken Town, and not slowing down at all. She was running so fast, she didn't notice when she took a wrong turn and came to a dead end. She turned to go back and realized that Kellach was no longer behind her. Suddenly, three huge men stepped into the alley. They were all big and mean looking, and one of them carried a knife. They grinned evilly at Moyra._

 _"Well, look what we got here!" one of the men sneered, "A little kitten all by herself."_

 _"You lost little girl?" the second man snickered, "We can keep you company. We play real nice." All three men chuckled._

 _"Leave me alone," Moyra told them, trying to hide her obvious terror, "I don't want any trouble!"_

 _"We'll leave you alone," the third man promised, "For the right price..."_

 _"But I don't have any money," Moyra replied, "I just live here in Broken Town."_

 _"Oh, don't have any money, eh?" the first man grinned, "But you_ do _have something else. Something else that we could take."_

 _Before Moyra could ask what they meant, they slowly started to approach her. Moyra cowered in fear when suddenly a voice came from behind the men._

 _"Leave her alone!"_

 _The three men whipped around. Standing at the entrance of the alley was Kellach, glaring at the men and standing a little taller than he was to try to look a little more intimidating. Moyra exclaimed with joy and tried to run over to him, but the men blocked her path._

 _"And what if we don't? Huh? You gonna rough us up, little man?" The three men chuckled._

 _"You don't want to mess with me!" Kellach told them in a brave sounding voice, "I'm the son of Torin, the captain of the watch! He could put you guys away for a long time!"_

 _"Torin's son?" the first man asked in disbelief, "Well, well, well! I've been looking for the opportunity to get back at that no-good watcher slime! What do ya say, boys? Should we kill his kid and have the girl for ourselves?"_

 _The other two men started to agree. Suddenly, Kellach looked panicked. "Wait!" he called, "I don't care what you do to me, but please don't hurt Moyra! She's my best friend!"_

 _Moyra felt her breath catch in her throat as the three men looked at him. "And why should we do anything you say?" the third man asked._

 _"Please don't hurt her," Kellach repeated, "It wouldn't be worth it. I have plenty of money on me. Take it. And you can beat me up and mug me or whatever you want. Just please leave her alone."_

 _"You really care about this girl, huh?" The first man asked, a hint of sentiment in his voice._

 _"I would give my life for her," Kellach replied quietly._

 _"Kellach," Moyra whispered, tears welling up in her eyes._

 _The three men looked at each other, then back at Kellach. "Fine," the second man answered, "We won't touch her. But in return, you are going to get the full front of our anger. We're going to kill you, kid."_

 _Kellach closed his eyes and slowly nodded. Before Moyra could object to this, one of the men reeled back a fist and brought it slamming into Kellach's stomach. The boy went down in a heap and then all three men were on top of him, punching and kicking and clawing. Moyra could do nothing but stare in horror._

 _Then the man with the knife brought it up, intending to stab Kellach in the heart._

 _"_ KELLACH _!" Moyra screamed with terror._

 _All of a sudden, there was the sound of bells and horns and the three men, startled, dropped everything and ran. Moyra quickly ran over to Kellach. He was lying very still on his side, his eyes closed, and was bleeding out of his many wounds. Moyra crouched down next to him and was relieved to see that he was still breathing. She gently nudged him._

 _"Kellach?" she asked._

 _Moyra's heart skipped a beat as Kellach's eyes fluttered. He slowly opened them and looked up at her. "Moyra?" His voice came in a harsh whisper. "Are you ok? Those men didn't hurt you, did they?"_

 _Shaking her head, Moyra could feel tears welling up in her eyes. "No, Kellach, they didn't hurt me," she told him, "I'm fine."_

 _"Good," Kellach whispered, "I'm so glad." He closed his eyes again._

 _"I'm so sorry, Kellach," Moyra said, her voice choking with grief, "This is all my fault. If I hadn't run ahead of you, or if I had been paying attention, I... I..."_

 _"It's not your fault," Kellach told her, his eyes still closed, "You were just excited is all. Besides, I made my own choice. I just couldn't let them hurt you."_

 _Tears ran down Moyra's cheeks. "Did you mean what you said back there?" she asked, "That you would give your life for me?"_

 _Kellach slowly opened his eyes to look at her. "Of course," he replied, his eyes shining with an emotion that Moyra would be unable to understand until she was much older, "You're my very best friend. I would give up everything for you. And that goes for my brother too. You two make my life complete."_

 _Then, exhausted, he closed his eyes again. Moyra quickly leaned forward and made sure he was still breathing. Something sparked in her heart, and Moyra found herself longing to lay next to him, to comfort him and keep him warm with her own body. With some difficulty, Moyra managed to haul Kellach to his feet and get him to wrap his arms around her neck as she half-carried, half-dragged him on her back._

 _"Don't worry, Kellach," she said softly to him, "I'm gonna get you back to my house and fix you up. You'll be good as new." She felt Kellach silently nod, and she carefully dragged him back to her house. It took a while, but they finally reached her house and Moyra carefully laid Kellach down on the couch. She cleaned his wounds as best she could._

 _"Thank you, Moyra," Kellach said quietly, "I don't know what I'd do without you."_

 _"I don't know what I'd do without you," Moyra replied sincerely._

 _Kellach closed his eyes and fell into sleep. Moyra stared at him for a few moments before carefully crawling onto the couch and lying next to him. She pressed close to him, hoping to keep him warm. Then she leaned forward and gently whispered in his ear as he slept._

 _"I love you."_

 **I think this is my longest chapter. Anyway, Moyra finally told Kellach how she feels, and next chapter is going to get a bit more tense as we see how Kellach feels about all of this. I've already typed up the first part of the next chapter as well. I'm telling you now, there will be feels.**

 **Is it a coincidence that Moyra confessing her feelings fell on chapter 13?**

 **Yes. Yes, it is.**


	14. Chapter 14

**For this chapter I'm going to do something a little different. It's going to start with Moyra and switch to Kellach. Also, I have the first part of this chapter typed out already.**

 **CHAPTER 14**

Kellach sighed heavily and turned away from Moyra, settling himself deeper into his corner of the couch. Moyra stared at him, concerned.

"Kellach?" Moyra asked cautiously. Kellach didn't reply, but simply closed his eyes. "Kellach?" Moyra asked again, a bit more urgently.

"I can't do this, Moyra," Kellach muttered, "That beast has taken everything out of me. It almost killed me today, and I can't forget the feeling of its cold touch."

"What are you talking about?" Moyra wondered, growing more concerned. Why did he suddenly change topics like that? Was he suddenly going to ignore that fact that she just confessed her love for him?

"It's going to kill us and drag us to the void with it," Kellach continued as if Moyra hadn't spoken, "Its power is too strong. I don't think I can stop it. Not anymore. Now it's too late for us. I couldn't do anything to fight back while it had me pinned down. You saw what it was like."

"Kellach, what's wrong with you?" Moyra asked him, "What are you talking about?" She gently put a hand on his shoulder and leaned over him.

She was surprised when he suddenly opened his eyes and stared straight ahead. "You lied to me," he said cryptically.

"What?" Moyra was even more puzzled than before. What in the world was going on?

"When we had our first kiss," Kellach clarified, "You lied to me. You didn't want to kiss me 'just to get it over with' and 'just as friends.' You wanted to kiss me because you were in love with me."

Moyra could only stare, having no idea how to reply. What did this have to do with the beast of shadows?

"Kellach, seriously, what are you talking about?" she asked, "I know I lied, but what does it matter? It's not important. Would you have done anything differently if I had told you it was because I was in love with you? I just wasn't ready to tell you yet."

"You tricked me," Kellach said, a hint of bitterness in his voice, "And what of the other times? Every time you pressed too close against me, or made me feel uncomfortable? And then you even made me feel bad for feeling uncomfortable! You said it meant nothing! But that was a lie too!"

"Kellach," Moyra said quietly, fear growing in her heart, "I didn't mean to lie to you. I didn't mean to hurt you. I just didn't want to hurt our friendship. I had to get you to relax; I didn't want you to feel uncomfortable around me. I just want to stay friends with you."

Kellach closed his eyes and said nothing. Moyra grew a little anxious. "Kellach?" she urged carefully, "Did you hear what I said? I just want to stay friends."

His eyes snapped open, and Kellach glared wildly up at Moyra. "Oh, I heard what you said!" he snarled, "But that's a lie too, isn't it? You don't want me to just be your friend, do you? You want me to love you back, don't you?" He suddenly sat up, pushing Moyra away from him, and glaring coldly at her. "Couldn't you see how uncomfortable I was? Didn't you care at all? Or were you too concerned with satisfying your own desires to notice or care?"

"Of course I care!" Moyra pleaded, feeling tears coming to her eyes, "I love you, Kellach! I would never do anything to hurt you!"

Kellach scoffed and turned away from her. Trying to ignore the pain in her heart, Moyra gently pressed closer to him. She was thankful that he didn't try to push her away. Feeling brave, she pressed a little closer, moving her body to slightly cover his, and she gently pressed her face into him, covering her tear stained eyes with his neck. Kellach didn't move or say anything. She sighed sadly.

"I'm sorry I lied to you," she said quietly, "I'm sorry I tricked you, and made you feel uncomfortable. I'm sorry I kissed you so forcefully and ignored how you felt. It's just… I love you so much, and I was afraid of what you would think of me if I told you. I was afraid you wouldn't want to be friends anymore." She sighed. "I guess I could've told you I love you before I tried to kiss you. Then I wouldn't have frightened you as much."

There was a pause, and Kellach let out a deep sigh. "You could've told me, you know," he said quietly, "Five years ago, you could've told me you love me. I would've understood. Yes, we were only eight and nine, but that's not really a problem. I don't know if I would've felt the same about you at the time, but at the very least it would've given me time to sort out my feelings. Perhaps I could've been in love with you now."

Moyra felt her heart race and she sat up to look at Kellach. He stared back at her with his blue gaze that she loved so much. She swallowed nervously.

"How _do_ you feel about me now?" she asked cautiously.

Kellach paused, then sighed. "I don't know," he replied quietly, "I don't even know how we can still remain just friends with you being in love with me. I know you've hidden it all these years, and acted like we're just friends, but I can't do that. I can't pretend that you're not in love with me. I can't _forget_ that you're in love with me." He sighed and leaned back into the couch. Moyra gently leaned on him, resting her head on his shoulder.

"What are we going to do?" Moyra asked softly, "You're breaking my heart."

"I don't know," Kellach repeated, "I just… don't know how to feel about you anymore."

Moyra felt her heart shatter. She pressed her face into his neck and sobbed quietly. She flinched slightly when she felt Kellach put a hand on her arm. Then she heard him sigh softly.

"Please don't cry, Moyra," Kellach told her gently, "I can't stand to see you so unhappy."

It took Moyra several moments to muster up enough breath to be able to speak through her tears. "Please don't stop being friends with me," she pleaded, "I can't bear to be without you. I don't care if you break my heart, I still love you. Please, Kellach, tell me what to do so we can still be friends!"

"I just need time to sort out my feelings," Kellach replied quietly, "You need to give me some space. With all that's going on right now, I'm more confused than ever."

"I can give you time and space," Moyra promised, "I don't even have to share your bed with you anymore! I can sleep with Driskoll instead. He already knows I'm in love with you."

Kellach looked at her, surprised. "He does?" he asked, "How?"

Moyra felt herself blush. "I told him," she answered, awkwardly, "I told him after he freed us from that icy room. I had to tell him," she said quickly before Kellach could ask, "It was driving me crazy, and I couldn't bring myself to tell you yet. Besides," she paused, "I didn't want him to feel left out, not knowing what's going on with us."

"I guess I understand," Kellach replied, sighing, "If you hadn't, I probably would've told him myself anyway." He closed his eyes, and Moyra suddenly noticed how exhausted he looked. She gently shook him.

"We should probably be getting back to bed," she told him, "Sorry for waking you in the middle of the night for all of this."

"It's all right," Kellach mumbled, his eyes still closed, "You can sleep with me for the rest of the night and until Driskoll gets better. I don't want to bother him."

He opened his eyes and was about to get up, when Moyra suddenly grabbed his arm. "Please," she said, "Before I leave you alone, may I… kiss you one more time? I… I kind of wanted to take my shirt off when I do. And I promise I won't bug you anymore after this." She looked up at him with her bright green eyes.

Kellach sat back down, sighing. He leaned back deep into the couch, very gently wrapping his arms around himself, and staring down at the floor, before meeting Moyra's gaze. He didn't say anything, but Moyra knew what his answer was. She smiled slightly, and drew her shirt up over her head, taking it off. Then she leaned over Kellach, pressing her body lightly against him.

"I love you," she told him. Then she leaned in and kissed him deeply.

…

Kellach didn't fall back asleep that night, despite how tired he was. In the darkness, he could feel Moyra pressing against him, and hear her soft breathing as she slept. He could feel her heart beating against his own chest, and her lips softly pressed against his neck. His mind was completely blank, but still sleep would not come. He took a deep breath and tried to calm himself, to make himself relax. When he finally did fall asleep, the sky was already starting to light up.

What he thought was a moment later, Kellach opened his eyes. The sun was high in the sky, and Moyra had already left. Driskoll was still asleep in the next bed. Kellach blinked, wondering how long he had slept for. He was still a little tired, but he couldn't sleep the day away, and so he forced himself out of bed.

When he got to the kitchen, he couldn't tell if he was surprised or not when he saw Alexandra sitting at the table waiting for him.

"You took your time getting up," she noted.

Kellach silently groaned and sat down next to her. "I didn't get a lot of sleep last night," he told her, "Moyra kept me up with… something." He looked over at her. "What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to tell you how my assessment with Zendric went," Alexandra said.

"Oh, right, that was this morning," Kellach remembered, "I'm sorry, I completely forgot. How did it go?"

A smile spread onto the girl's face. "He said I'm doing much better than before," she replied, "He said I'm like an entirely new student. And it's all because of you!"

Kellach smiled warmly at her. "That's wonderful, Alex," he said, "I'm so glad for you."

Alexandra blushed and smiled. She suddenly started to lean towards him, and Kellach quickly leaned back, panicked.

"What are you doing?" he asked, startled. Alex quickly pulled back, a little surprised.

"Sorry!" she exclaimed, blushing red, "I don't know! It was nothing!"

After a moment's pause, Kellach let out the breath he had been holding and stood up. He walked over to the sink, pouring himself a glass of water. He heard Alexandra shift in her seat behind him.

"Kellach, I want to tell you something I think you should know," she said.

"All right," Kellach replied. He turned around and was startled by Alex suddenly standing behind him. She was standing so close to him, he had to take a few steps back. The girl smiled slightly at him.

"Ever since I met you, you've been very kind to me," she said, stepping towards him, "I can tell your brother and friend don't like me very much, but you've been quite patient with me while teaching me magic. You're like no one I've ever met before."

Kellach felt a strange feeling rising inside him, a panic that he had felt all too recently. Alex very lightly pressed herself against him and gently pressed him against the wall. She leaned in and murmured into his ear.

"Kellach," she whispered, "I've fallen deeply in love with you."

Before Kellach could reply, Alexandra gently kissed him. Kellach took a sharp breath, feeling Alex's lips lightly touching his own. Her kiss was gentle, but deep, and he could feel her gripping his arms, holding him still. She breathed softly into him, and he felt himself choke. She kissed him several times, tasting him, and teasing him. It was several moments before she pulled away from him.

Kellach stared in shock at her as Alex smiled sweetly at him. She leaned in for another kiss, but Kellach stopped her.

"Listen, Alex," he said as nicely as he could, "I'm humbled and flattered that you would be in love with me, even if I don't understand why," He paused to take a breath, "But with everything that's happening right now, I don't really want to be in a relationship right now. I'm sorry."

Alexandra's smile didn't change at all. "I understand," she replied, "You have a lot going on. I just really wanted to tell you how I feel."

"Thank you," Kellach said quietly. At least that was one thing he didn't have to worry about. Alex smiled warmly.

"But Kellach," she continued, "Would it be all right if you continued to tutor me? I feel much more confident with you. And don't worry, I won't randomly try to make out with you or anything." There was a twinkle of humor in her eyes.

Kellach felt a strange sort of dread rising inside him, but he shook it off. "Of course," he replied, "I wouldn't mind."

Alexandra pressed against him gently. "Thank you," she said softly. She stood like that for a moment more before pulling away. "Well, I'd better get home. I have some important work to do." She leaned in, giving Kellach a quick and gentle kiss on the lips before heading out. "See you later, my love." She said.

Kellach stared after her, wondering if he had just made a horrible mistake.

 **Wow, that was fast. Like I said, I already had half of this written up, and I knew what the other half was going to be about. I hope you didn't hate Kellach too much in this chapter for what he said to Moyra! I like having heavy emotional conflict, and if Kellach just loved Moyra right away, I felt like it would be too boring. Anyway, next chapter we go back to Driskoll's perspective, and he's finally going to be feeling better. If anyone is actually reading this, please leave a review!**


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